Spicy beans with feta - Bill Granger

I love this dish for breakfast/brunch and it always seems to be a hit with others too.  We had it again this weekend with some friends who came over for brunch.  I served it alongside chipolatas, fresh avocado, blanched spinach and toast from the bbq - was really delicious.

Often I make double quantities and keep a batch in the freezer.  I also usually use half kidney beans and half cannellini beans just for aesthetics - I also leave out the spring onion as I'm not a big onion person in the mornings but I'm sure it would be fine.

Bill also suggests "as an alternative to toast, try these beans with corn tortillas.  Wrap a stack in foil and pop in the oven 5 minutes before the beans will be ready."

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground cumin
400g tin chopped tomatoes
2 tsp brown sugar
2 x 400g tins red kidney beans, rinsed
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
juice of a lime, or to taste
handful of coriander leaves
1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
100g feta cheese, crumbed
3 spring onions, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 160 degrees.
Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof casserole dish over medium heat.
Add the onion and cook, stirring, for 5-6 minutes until soft.
Add the garlic and cumin and cook, stirring for another minute.
Add the tomatoes, sugar and 125ml water.
Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir in the kidney beans and season with salt and pepper.
Put the lid on the casserole and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
Just before serving, add lime juice to taste and scatter over the coriander, chilli, feta and spring onions.
Serves 4.
Recipe by Bill Granger, Feed Me Now, Page 21.

Beef and red wine pot pie

Mum made this recipe one weekend when my sister was up staying with them and I was sent a photo of a pie which made me want to make it immediately!  It looked fantastic and all reports were that it tasted just as good.  Dad sent me the recipe which I think is from the Good Weekend or Good Living and my attempt turned out pretty well.

This dish takes a long time to cook so best to do it when you have an afternoon at home - the meat needs four hours in the oven, then an additional 25 minutes with the pastry on top.

I served mine with green beans and roasted tomatoes - they are pretty large pies so you don't need much more.  The recipe suggests serving with mashed potatoes as well. 

1 kg chuck beef or beef shin

2 tbsp flour

Sea salt and pepper

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 carrots, diced

4 garlic cloves, crushed

4 anchovy fillets, chopped

100g tomato paste

4 bay leaves

250ml red wine

250ml water

2tbsp parsley, chopped

1tbsp parmesan, freshly grated

1 packet puff pastry, thawed

1 egg, beaten

Heat oven to 150 degrees.

Cut beef into large bite-sized chunks, trimming off any major bits of fat.

Toss meat in seasoned flour.

Heat oil and brown meat, turning well.

Place in a heatproof casserole dish with carrots, garlic, anchovy fillets, tomato paste, bay leaves, salt and pepper.

Add red wine and water and toss; the meat should be covered.

Cover and bake for four hours; if too runny, bake for the final 30 minutes uncovered.

You can do this step a day or two beforehand.

Heat oven to 200 degrees. 

Roughly shred the meat and mix with parsley and parmesan. 

Lay pastry on a floured surface and place a pie dish or ovenproof bowl upside down on top. 

Cut out four circles one centimetre larger than rim.

From remaining pastry, cut a few one-centimetre-wide strips.

Lightly oil each bowl and fill with meat. 

Press pastry strips around each rim and brush with beaten egg.

Place pastry lids on top and press down firmly to seal.

Trim if necessary and brush with beaten egg.

Bake for 25 minutes or until golden.

If you want to serve with roasted tomato, bake them alongside.

Serves 4.

 Pie straight out of the oven

A shot trying to show the inside goodness

Annabel's Hot Chocolate Fudge Sauce (by Donna Hay)

This hot fudge sauce is seriously delicious.  My girlfriend Annabel served it for dessert a few weeks ago and I have been thinking of it ever since...  Now I have the recipe!  

Annabel served it as a topping for ice-cream sundaes - we all made our own (quality ice-cream and roasted slivered almonds) and then poured this fudge sauce over the top...  SO GOOD! 

Place 200g chopped dark chocolate, 1/2 cup (single or pouring cream), 2 tbsp honey and 50g butter in a small saucepan over low heat and stir for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture is melted and smooth.

Serve immediately.  Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Pour fudge sauce over ice-cream and cakes. 

Thanks for the recipe and amazing dessert Annabel x

Pumpkin and chicken curry - a Paleo recipe

Mum gave me this recipe and it's very tasty and easy for a mid-week meal.  Quick to prepare and cook.

I served ours with brown rice and green beans on the side.

2 chicken breasts, sliced

5 cups pumpkin, diced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp ground ginger

1 tbsp ground turmeric

2 tbsp ground coriander

2 tbsp ground cumin

1 1/2 cups vegetable stock

1 bunch fresh coriander, chopped

Salt

Fry onion and garlic in a large pan with oil on medium heat for 2 minutes.

Add chicken and cook stirring constantly for 10 minutes or until chicken has turned white.

Add pumpkin, ginger, turmeric, coriander and cumin and stir for 1 minute.

Add stock and leave to simmer on low heat for 15 minutes.

Add chopped coriander, cover pan and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Season with salt to taste.

Cool slightly before serving.

Serves 4.

Recipe by Paleo - http://www.livingpaleo.com/pumpkin-and-chicken-curry/

Roast Pork Belly - Jamie Oliver

This was my first attempt at pork belly - it turned out pretty well!  It's a good recipe, but obviously the pork needs a long time in the oven so make sure you start early.

I forgot to buy the veggies below for the pork to sit on in the later part of the cooking process but it didn't matter - it just sat on the onion, garlic and thyme and was fine.  It probably impacted the gravy flavour more...we didn't end up using our gravy as it didn't taste all that great.  I think using stock rather than water would be better...?

Some mashed potato and baby asparagus were our accompaniments, I also made apple sauce which was delicious (and made up for our lack of gravy).  The meat melted in your mouth and the crackling was amazing - and I'm not usually that into pork belly!

1.5kg pork belly
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 red onions, halved
2 carrots, peeled and halved lengthways
2 sticks of celery, chopped in half
1 bulb garlic, skin on, broken into cloves
a small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked
600ml water or stock

"The lovely thick layer of fat on this particular cut keeps the meat really moist as it roasts, and also gives you an incredible even layer of delicious crackling.  Belly is a very underrated cut in the UK, but it is becoming a favourite on gastropub menus, and rightly so.  If you're worried about scoring the crackling yourself, ask your butcher to do it for you."

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 2.5 hours

Preheat your oven to full whack, it needs to be at least 220 degrees.
Place your pork on a clean work surface, skin-side upwards.
Get yourself a small sharp knife and make scores about a centimetre apart through the skin into the fat, but not so deep that you cut into the meat.
Rub salt right into all the scores you've just made, pulling the skin apart a little if you have to.
Brush any excess salt off the surface and turn it over.
Season the underside of the meat with a little more salt an a little black pepper.
Place your pork, skin side-up, in a roasting tray big enough to hold the pork and the vegetables, and place in the hot oven.

Roast for about half an hour until the skin of the port has started to puff up and you can see it turning into crackling.
Turn the heat down to 180 degrees and roast for another hour.
Take out of the oven and baste with the bat in the bottom of the tray.
Carefully lift the pork up and transfer to a chopping board.
Add all the veg, garlic and thyme to the tray and stir them into the fat.
Place the pork on top of everything and pop the tray back in the oven.
Roast for another hour.
By this time the meat should be meltingly soft and tender.
Carefully move the meat to a serving dish, cover with tin foil and leave to rest while you make your gravy.

Spoon away any fat in the tray, then add the water or stock and place the tray on the hob.
Bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon to scrape up all those lovely sticky tasty bits on the bottom of the tray.
When you've got a nice, dark gravy, pour it through a sieve into a bowl or gravy boat, using your spoon to really push all the goodness of the veg through the sieve.
Add a little more salt and pepper if it needs it.
Serve the port with the crackling, gravy, some creamy mashed potato, nice fresh greens and a dollop of English mustard.
Serves 4.
Recipe by Jamie Oliver - http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pork-recipes/pork-belly-roast

Chocolate Mousse Cake - Donna Hay

It was my husband's birthday over the weekend and I wanted to make a delicious cake for him (and us all to enjoy!).  This Donna Hay mousse cake was amazing - I'd definitely do it again.

It's actually made in two parts as there is a cake base, and then a thick rich mousse layer on top.  I served ours with strawberries and double cream.  I also didn't trim the top of the cake as it suggests in the recipe below - was short of time and instead flipped the cake base over so I was pouring the mousse onto the flat base of the cake.  It worked out well.

1 cup almond meal (ground almonds)
1 2/3 cup icing (confectioner's) sugar, sifted
1/2 cup plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted
1/4 cup cocoa, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder, sifted
5 egg whites
200g butter, melted

chocolate mousse filling
400g dark chocolate, chopped
100g 70 per cent dark chocolate, chopped
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
2 cups (500ml) single (pouring) cream, whipped

Preheat oven to 160 degrees.
Place the almond meal, icing sugar, flour, cocoa and baking powder in a bowl and stir to combine.
Add the egg whites and butter and stir to combine.
Pour the mixture into a lightly greased 22cm round springform cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until cake is springy to touch and comes away from the sides of the tin.
Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Once cooled, use a serrated knife to trim the top off the cake.
Line the tin with plastic wrap.
Place the cake in the base of the tin.
Set aside.

To make the chocolate mousse filling, place the chocolate and vanilla seeds in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until melted and smooth.
Set aside to cool slightly.
Fold the chocolate mixture through the cream until well combined.
Spoon the mousse over the cake base.
Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.
Carefully remove the tin and plastic wrap to serve.
Serves 6-8.
Recipe by Donna Hay - http://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/sweets/cakes/chocolate-mousse-cake

Thai chicken and bean curry - Donna Hay

A really tasty and simple recipe from Donna Hay.  Ideal for mid-week as it is quick to prepare and cook.

2 tsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp Thai yellow curry paste+
2 chicken breast fillets, sliced
1 x 400ml can coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock
150g green beans, trimmed and sliced
115g baby corn, halved
2 tsp fish sauce
125g cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup basil leaves
lime wedges and steamed rice to serve

Heat oil in a large saucepan over high heat.
Add the curry paste and cook, stirring, for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.
Add the chicken and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes.
Add the coconut milk and stock and bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat to low and cook for 4-5 minutes or until slightly thickened.
Add the beans and corn and cook for 3-4 minutes or until tender.
Remove from the heat and stir through the fish sauce, tomato and basil.
Serve with lime wedges and steamed rice.
Serves 4.
Recipe by Donna Hay - http://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/fastfood/chicken/thai-chicken-and-bean-curry

+Yellow curry is mild and aromatic.  You can use red or green curry paste; green is hot and sweet while red is milder and less pungent.

I forgot to take a photo of this - will add a pic soon.

Still in the pot

Served with steamed rice - very saucy and tasty!