Author: Marni MacLeod

Chimichurri Sauce with Cilantro
July 6, 2019

Chimichurri Sauce with Cilantro

This recipe is a tweaked version of Chimichurri Sauce (Argentinian Pesto) from Simply Recipes. The original does not have cilantro, mine does. Ingredients 1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley, trimmed of thick stems 1 bunch fresh cilantro trim the bottom stems off but use the tender …

Sauces + Slathers
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by Marni MacLeod
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Corn and Green Onion Fritters with Savoury Ricotta Slather
July 1, 2019

Corn and Green Onion Fritters with Savoury Ricotta Slather

This long weekend my friend Annabel and I made Pan Fried Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Ricotta and Oregano. They were phenomenal, but we had left over batter so we decided to mix in some cooked corn and chopped green onions and make fritters. We used …

Appetizers
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by Marni MacLeod
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Pan Fried Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Ricotta and Fresh Oregano
July 1, 2019

Pan Fried Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Ricotta and Fresh Oregano

My friend Annabel likes to cook new things (aside from daughters who used to be in dance together, we also have this in common). This week she picked up some lovely zucchini blossoms at the farmer’s market and we decided to have a go at cooking them up. We had a look on the internet and the ricotta stuffed flowers looked and sounded pretty appealing. The original recipe is from Jamie Oliver’s Crispy Zucchini Flowers Stuffed with Ricotta and Mint but Annabel only had spearmint in the garden so we went with (garden fresh) oregano instead and it was delicious!

Not to worry she made us some Apple Mint Shrub Gin and Tonics so the spearmint did not go to waste!

We only had five zucchini flowers so we cut down on the batter and then made Corn and Green Onion Fritters with the leftovers (waste not want not!). The extra ricotta filling from the zucchini blossoms was great slathered on top.

Ingredients

  • 250 g ricotta cheese
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 C freshly grated Parmesan
  • zest of 1 lemon, plus lemon wedges for serving
  • 4-5 springs of fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped
  • 1 small fresh red chili, halved, seeded and very finely chopped
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 C self-rising flour
  • 1 1/4 C sparkling water
  • 5-8 zucchini flowers
  • Light tasting oil for frying (we used Canola oil)
  • A small piece potato, peeled, to test the oil is hot enough

Directions

  1. Lightly rinse the zucchini flowers, drain and pat dry.
  2. Gently open the flowers up and remove the middle stamen (they taste bitter).
  3. Mix ricotta in a bowl with the nutmeg, Parmesan, lemon zest chopped oregano and chiles. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Remember that self-raising flour has some salt in it already.
  4. Put the flour into a mixing bowl with a good pinch of salt. Whisk in the sparkling water until thick and smooth (like heavy cream).
  5. Spoon the ricotta into a small sandwich bag and snip off the corner to make a piping bag.
  6. Gently open the flower and gently squeeze the filling into each until just full (it’s easiest with two people, one holding the flower open and the other piping). Carefully press the flowers back together around the mixture to seal it in. Then put the flowers aside. (We used the leftover ricotta on the Corn and Green Onion Fritters we made with the leftover batter).
  7. Heat about 1″ of oil in a good-size frying pan. Have tongs handy for turning the flowers and lifting the out of the oil.
  8. Prepare a plate with a double layer of paper towels for draining.
  9. Heat the oil up and drop in your piece of potato. When the potato turns golden and floats you are ready to go. Remove potato from the pan.
  10. One by one, dip the flowers into the batter, making sure they’re completely covered, and gently let any excess drip off. Carefully release them, away from you, into the hot oil. Quickly batter another 1 or 2 flowers and add them to the pan being careful not to crowd the pan.
  11. Fry until golden and crisp all over, then lift them out of the oil and drain on the paper towels.
  12. Remove to a plate or board and sprinkle with a good pinch of salt. You can let them cool 5-10 minutes and then squeeze  some lemon juice on them before eating.

Really, really delicious!

Appetizers
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by Marni MacLeod
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Peruvian Chicken with Green Sauce and Coconut Rice Infused with Lemon Grass and Kafir Lime Leaves
June 9, 2019

Peruvian Chicken with Green Sauce and Coconut Rice Infused with Lemon Grass and Kafir Lime Leaves

The original recipe is from Simplysated.com. I made a couple minor changes here and there. It was delicious!

Chicken, Dinner, Gluten Free
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by Marni MacLeod
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Easy Peasy Roasted Potatoes, Tomatoes, and Red Onion
June 8, 2019

Easy Peasy Roasted Potatoes, Tomatoes, and Red Onion

Sometimes simple is best and this recipe for roasted potatoes, tomatoes and red onion fits the bill.

Gluten Free, Side Dish, Vegan, Vegetarian
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by Marni MacLeod
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Socca aka Chickpea Pancakes
June 2, 2019

Socca aka Chickpea Pancakes

This Socca chickpea pancake recipe is based on David Lebovitz’s Socca Recipe.

Ingredients

  • 1 C chickpea flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill chickpea and fava flour
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 4 Tbsps olive oil (and more for the pan)
  • 1/2 large red onion, thinly sliced

Directions

  1. Whisk the flour, water, salt, cumin, turmeric and 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Let batter rest, covered, at room temperature for at least an hour or up to 12. It should be the consistency of heavy cream.
  2. To cook, heat the oven to 450F. Oil a 9- or 10-inch (23cm) cast iron skillet with the remaining olive oil and heat the pan in the oven.
  3. Remove the pan from the oven and add the onions and stir, let them cook for 3-5 minutes stirring a couple times until browned. Pour enough batter into the pan to cover the bottom, swirl it around, then pop it back in the oven.
  4. Bake until the socca is firm (10-15 minutes).
  5. Remove from oven.
  6. Turn on the broiler and brush the top of the pancake with 1 or 2 tablespoons of oil if it looks dry. Return the pan to the oven, a few inches away from the broiler, and cook long enough to brown it in spots. Cut it into wedges, and serve hot or warm.
Dairy free, Dinner, Gluten Free, Pancakes, Side Dish, Snacks
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by Marni MacLeod
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Banana Apple Sauce Muffins with Coconut Oil and Chocolate Chips (DF)
May 25, 2019

Banana Apple Sauce Muffins with Coconut Oil and Chocolate Chips (DF)

Have brown bananas? Yay! Make these banana apple sauce muffins. I used the recipe for Quick & Easy Banana Muffins from Sally’s Baking Addiction as a base and swapped apple sauce for the milk and threw in a cup of chocolate chips. The apple sauce …

Baked treats, Muffins
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by Marni MacLeod
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Leftover Basmati Coconut Rice Pudding in the Slow Cooker
May 17, 2019

Leftover Basmati Coconut Rice Pudding in the Slow Cooker

I happen to love rice pudding. There’s something nostalgic from my childhood about it that says comfort food to me (ok, I’d had kind of a bad day). Anyway, I found myself with six cups of cooked basmati rice (don’t ask, I forgot about a …

Dessert, Slow Cooker
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by Marni MacLeod
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Gluten-free, Vegan Chocolate Brownie Muffins
May 13, 2019

Gluten-free, Vegan Chocolate Brownie Muffins

This started out as a hunt for the best gluten-free brownie recipe. I started with Simply Recipes Gluten-free Fudgy Chocolate Brownies and ad libbed a little because I thought the batter looked a little too thick and I opted to leave the chocolate chips whole instead of melting them into the coconut oil.

These turned out very well but they are closer to a muffin than a brownie, thus the name.

Ingredients

  • 3 flax eggs (3 Tbsp ground flax seed whisked with 8 Tbsp water)
  • 1 C gluten-free flour, I used Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1/2 C cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 C coconut oil melted and cooled
  • 1/2 C brown sugar
  • 1/2 C coconut sugar
  • 1/2 C white sugar
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2  C apple sauce
  • 1/2 C Rice Dream or Almond Milk
  • 1 C chocolate chips

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F
  2. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with large parchment paper muffin cups.
  3. Prepare the flax eggs by whisking together the ground flax with 8 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Let stand while you prepare the dry ingredients. If you are grinding from seed, 2 1/2 tsp of flax seed will grind to 1 Tbsp.
  4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, white sugar, and coconut sugar.
  5. Melt the coconut oil and let cool slightly.
  6. Whisk the brown sugar and vanilla into the coconut oil, then whisk in the flax eggs, apple sauce and Rice Dream. The mixture will be a little grainy.
  7. Stir the wet ingredients into a the dry ingredients until well combined.
  8. Fold in the cup of chocolate chips.
  9. Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin tin parchment-lined cups.
  10. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until tops of the muffins are soft and the edges cooked.
  11. Let the muffins cool completely. Then reheat slightly before serving with Ice Cream or non-dairy frozen yummy stuff of your choice.
Baked treats, Dessert, Gluten Free, Muffins
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by Marni MacLeod
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Honey Balsamic Pork Loin Chops in the Slow Cooker
May 5, 2019

Honey Balsamic Pork Loin Chops in the Slow Cooker

When I go the to grocery store (or the butcher shop) the only plan I go with is to see what’s on sale and figure out what to cook from there. Meat is expensive these days! This time, when I arrived at Jackson’s Meats in …

Dinner, Pork, Slow Cooker
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by Marni MacLeod
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