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Lazy Digestive Biscuits

Lazy Digestive Biscuits

I had a craving for cookies but was also feeling lazy so I made the dough, rolled it into a rectangle and used a bench scraper to cut it into rectangles. Recipe from Moorlands Eater’s Homemade Digestive Biscuits. Minor substitution of light buckwheat flour for 

Greenbrier 7 Layer Cookies

Greenbrier 7 Layer Cookies

This recipe is based on this recipe for 7 Layer Cookies but we made a few changes on amounts and ingredients. 12 x 10 inch baking dish (you can get away with a 10 x 10 pan if need be) Ingredients 1 1/2 cup graham 

Christmas Grape Salsa

Christmas Grape Salsa

Based on the red grape salsa recipe from Lesley Stowe here: https://www.lesleystowe.com/recipes/grape-salsa/

1 cup red grapes, quartered
1 cup green grapes, quartered
¼ cup minced shallots
¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
1 small serrano or Thai chili, seeded and finely minced
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh tarragon (or 1 Tbsp dried tarragon)
2 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp sea salt

8 oz Cambozola

Toss all the ingredients together and let stand for at least 15 mintues. Bring Cambozola to room temperature before serving together with Pecan, Raisin and Rosemary Crackers.

 

Ottolenghi roasted potatoes with Green sauce and Tahini

Ottolenghi roasted potatoes with Green sauce and Tahini

Great side dish for any meal. The green sauce is fresh and punchy and the tahini ads a lovely creaminess. I tweaked the original recipe a bit:  Roasted potatoes with green sauce and tahini. Ingredients 1.5 kg potatoes (I used fingerlings but the original recipe 

Mint Yogurt Chutney

Mint Yogurt Chutney

Mint yogurt chutney is a great sauce for lamb kofta or any “meatball” type dish. It’s got a bit of a kick that pairs nicely with sweet mango salsa or plum sauce. Adapted from Recipe 1 from Swasthi’s Recipes. Ingredients 1 cup mint leaves, packed 

Leek and potato soup with sautéed sage leaves

Leek and potato soup with sautéed sage leaves

Leek and pototo soup is one of the easiest soups around and great for a rainy August day. If you don’t have any leeks, live dangerously and use 2 cups of yellow, Vidalia or Spanish onions. No one will arrest you.

We also had loads of beautiful fresh sage in the garden so I thought I should do something with it. So, sautéed sage as a garnish it was.

Ingredients

  • 2 large leeks, cleaned and sliced fine (white and tender green parts)
  • 5 medium size red potatoes, washed and diced (no need to peel them if the skins are tender)
  • 2 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2-3 Tbsp butter
  • 1 litre chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • bunch of fresh sage leaves, washed and removed from stock

Method

  1. Melt butter in a medium-size pot over med-low heat. Add the leeks and sauté until tender.
  2. Add the sliced garlic and cook until aromatic.
  3. Add the chicken stock, pototoes, bay leaves, a healthy grind of pepper and salt.
  4. Give it a good stir and bring just to a boil and then reduce the heat to a low simmer.
  5. Simmer for 45 minutes.
  6. Done.
  7. For the sage leaves, cover the bottom of a frying pan with good olive oil and bring the oil to a shimmer (medium-high). Add the sage leaves in a single layer and fry for about 30 seconds flipping half way through. Remove the sage leaves to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain and sprinkle lightly with sea salt.
  8. Ladle soup in to bowls and garnish with the fried sage leaves.
  9. Serve with some good bread.
Lemon Yogurt Cake and Cream Cheese Drizzle

Lemon Yogurt Cake and Cream Cheese Drizzle

This is my adaption of Easy Yogurt Cake but I used self-raising flour so I didn’t add extra baking powder. I also added the zest and juice of half a lemon and topped it with Cream Cheese Glaze. Ingredients 1 cup plain yogurt, room temperature 

Chinese Braised Brisket with Daikon in the Slow Cooker

Chinese Braised Brisket with Daikon in the Slow Cooker

This is my version of Delicious Chinese Beef Brisket Stew from the @ChineseCookingChannel. This brisket is flavourful and it’s easy to stretch for a crowd with rice and greens as a side. Ingredients 3 lbs beef brisket 4-6 1/2″ chunks of peeled ginger root 6-8 

Sushi Rice (Stove Top)

Sushi Rice (Stove Top)

Sushi rice is great for rice bowls  (in addition to sushi!) so it’s handy to know how to make a quick batch. I often use any leftovers to make fried rice or sometimes rice pudding (it’s short grain rice so it works well).

Ingredients

  • 1 cup sushi rice
  • 1 and 1/4 cups water
  • Sushi vinegar (3:2:1 of rice wine vinegar, sugar and salt)

Method

  1. Rinse the rice in a medium sized sauce pan (2-3 times until the water is mostly translucent). Drain and put back in the pot.
  2. Add 1 and 1/4 cups of cold water to the rice, turn the heat to high and bring the rice to a boil with the lid off.
  3. Once rice comes to a boil, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes.
  4. Remove the pot from the heat and let it continue to steam for another 10 minutes (keep the lid ON, you need the steam to finish cooking the rice).
  5. Remove the lid and fluff.
  6. To season (if you want to), remove the rice and spread out in a wide bowl, tray or chopping board. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of the sushi vinegar over the cooling rice and gently fold it in with a rice paddle or wooden spoon).
Baked Salmon Cakes

Baked Salmon Cakes

I used Coho salmon fillets for this recipe (get them skinless if you can). I’m not a fan of frying things so I adapted the Salmon cakes recipe from Once Upon a Chef and baked them instead. It worked out just fine. Ingredients ¼ cup