Healthy Home Made - Roasted Capsicum Dip

This is such an easy recipe and takes little to no time to make. You can buy most of the ingredients preprepared which cuts down on the time.

If you want to start from scratch, then keep reading, if not, skip to the bottom. But be warned, you're going to miss out on the good bits...

You'll need:

3 fresh medium sized red capsicums
2 cloves of fresh garlic (not peeled)
oil spray
salt & pepper
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1-1 1/2 cups pine nuts
1 red chilli

Start off by preheating the oven to 180°c for 10 mins. Then grab your capsicums, core & deseed them, then cut into halves or thirds. Lightly oil the pieces, put them and the garlic on an oven tray, and bake for 30 minutes.

While they're baking, we need to lightly dry toast the pine nuts. In a non-stick pan, with no oil, throw in the pine nuts, and toast over a medium flame. You'll see them change to a light golden colour. Make sure not to burn them though. Set aside to cool.

Grate the parmesan, and put in a bowl, ready to go.

When the capsicums and garlic are done, squeeze the garlic out and carefully chop them and set aside to cool. Make sure everything is cool to touch before putting them in the food processor. 

Then, put everything in the bowl of the food processor, and blitz until you reach the consistency you like. 

Now, you may find that you use all the pine nuts, or not a lot, work the recipe to your tastes.

 

You can serve it straight away, or chill it till firm.

Let me know how yours turns out!

Love,

J xx

Healthy Home Made - Raw Beetroot Dip

Beets, beets, the magical food, the more you eat, the quicker your liver can process toxins, the quicker your liver processes toxins, the better you feel, so eat your beets with every meal!

But seriously, the beetroot is an amazing vegetable, and is both delicious and good for you. 

Did you know that the beta cyanin, the pigment that gives beetroot its amazing colour, is actually an antioxidant? It helps speed up detox of your liver, so if you've gone out for a night on the town and are feeling a little worse for wear, try a glass or two of beetroot juice, it might just help beat that hang over.

Beetroot also contains betaine, a substance which relaxes the mind, and is used in other forms, to treat depression. It also contains trytophan, which is found in chocolate and contributes to a sense of well being.  

I myself love beetroot in burgers, the true Aussie way! But you can have it in various forms, such as dip, chips, grated in salad or even in soup. It's great raw or cooked. 

I recently bought a couple of bunches from Bushy Park and would normally turn them into chips, but I thought, with the weather warming up, why not try our hand at a beetroot dip. 

Clearly it's a messy venture, so make sure you have lots of room, and cleaning products on hand. Food handling gloves are also your best friend, have a few pairs on hand (pun intended) and swap them out if you get any holes, otherwise you risk having pinky purple skin for a few days.

You'll need:

850gm of fresh beetroots, peeled - cut into medium sized chunks. The smaller the bits, the quicker and easier they blitz. You can also cut the beets into small cubes for a chunky version.

2 cloves of garlic

about a cup of natural Greek yoghurt

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 

1/2 tsp ground coriander

salt and pepper to taste

Feel free to add any other spices or herbs depending on your tastes. Everyone is different, and you may not like Cumin, but love turmeric etc etc. 

Chuck the beets and garlic in the food processor (or not), and blitz until smooth.

Now throw in the spices and seasoning's and blitz until combined.

Transfer to a bowl and fold in the yoghurt, spoonful at a time, until it suits your tastes. You might find you want more yoghurt, and that's cool, just add more!

Now, some people among us may not like the fact this is raw, and may comment that they don't like the 'raw' taste. That's perfectly fine, we always have a way of working around these things

If you don't want Raw dip, then:

Cut the beets into chunks, and lightly coat in oil and spices. Roast at 180°c for about an hour. Take them out of the oven and allow to cool, then blitz and add yoghurt.

I did not prepare my space very well... whoops!

This recipe makes quite a lot of dip, so unless you eat beetroot dip twice a day, every day, you can either halve the recipe, or make the normal amount, and give it away as presents. 

Unfortunately, I've found it doesn't really freeze very well, but will store in the fridge for a couple of weeks.

Just charming isn't he.

Anyhoo, let me know if you have any other delicious uses for beetroots! I have a chutney recipe I've been dying to try, so when I do, you lovely readers will be the first to hear about it!

Love,

J xx

Breakfast Of Champions

Weekend breakfast, one of my favourite meals. I mean, you actually have time to cook, you don't have to rush to eat, so you can sit down and enjoy your meal.

One of the recipes on my 28DBT was Scrambled eggs in pita. It looked okay, but I decided to beef it up a little, and add a couple of extra vegies, Still very healthy, but slightly more calories than I was allocated on the 28DBT, oh well.

So, here is my masterpiece!



Looks delicious, right? Well, it actually is. Here is a rough guide on what I put in my version. It always ends up being a little different, just because I don't measure everything.

Serves 1

Scrambled egg mix - 2 eggs & Splash of low fat milk
Hand full of baby spinach
5 cherry tomatoes, quartered
Avocado (to spread)
Low fat feta cheese (block the size of a match box)
Small handful of red onion, finely diced
10 or so small mushrooms, sliced or quartered
1 pita pocket, cut in half (you eat both halves)

Keep in mind, you can add anything else you like, or take anything out. A small amount of grated tasty cheese is also really nice, but feel free to add some meat based protein like chicken, turkey, or even bacon if you're feeling a little naughty. Make it a little Mediterranean by adding some capsicum and olives perhaps?

So, start off by lightly frying your onion. I use a little bit of oil spray, but it's up to you. Then you need to scramble your eggs mix, and depending on how you like them, when they're half way done, throw everything else in and cook until the spinach has wilted.

If you're not keen on cooking everything, feel free to make your scrambled eggs, and put them in the pita pocket, with everything staying fresh. Entirely up to you.

Shove everything (gently) into the pita pocket, and enjoy! I recommend eating this over a plate, as it can get a little messy.

If you have any other great breakfast ideas, comment below and let me know!

Challenge 2014 - Week 13 - Churros

Desserts are one of my favourite meals, full of sweet delicious goodness, how can you go wrong. So for this weeks challenge, we made churros.

I scoured my cook books, and came across two recipes for the choux pastry, one that didn't work and was a horrid disaster, and the other, from Margaret Foulton, which was a massive hit!

So, I'm going to share Marg's recipe, which we found came out much fluffier and nicer.


Churros, with Chocolate Sauce, and Butterscotch Sauce

Churros

I forgot to have the eggs and butter in this pic as well

1 cup plain flour 
1 cup water 
125 g unsalted butter, cut into pieces 
1 teaspoon sugar 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
4 eggs, beaten lightly 

1. Sift the flour on to a square of greaseproof paper.
2. Put the water, butter, sugar and salt into a saucepan. Bring to a rapid boil and, using the greaseproof paper as a funnel, pour the flour all at once into the boiling mixture.
3. Over a gentle heat, incorporate quickly and thoroughly with a wooden spoon and beating until the mixture balls around the spoon and leaves the sides of the pan (a bit of muscle is needed here). This process dries the paste and cooks the flour.
4. Remove from the heat, transfer to a plate and cool to lukewarm. 
5. Put into a bowl and gradually beat in the eggs. If the paste is very stiff, beat an extra egg and add gradually, until a pliable consistency is obtained. Beat the paste until well combined, shiny and smooth.

Chocolate Sauce

Getting things ready for the chocolate sauce!

100gm dark chocolate, chopped into bits

1/2 cup cream

1. Warm the cream on the stove, but make sure not to boil

2. Pour the warm cream over the chocolate, and stir to melt and combine!

Butterscotch Sauce

So few ingredients for such a yummy sauce!

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt (regular or large-flake sea salt)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Melt the butter, add sugar, and cream, stirring till all combined.

2. Bring to the boil, and boil for 4-5 minutes.

3. Take it off the heat and allow it to cool for a few minutes, before adding the vanilla extract.

Okay, so now you have everything ready to go, it's time to cook these little beauties!

1. In a large saucepan, heat a few cups of oil. We used vegetable oil, but you can use canola, or bran oil, which ever you prefer. Heat it over a medium flame, until a small cube of bread sizzles when dropped in the hot oil.

2. Place your dough in a piping bag, with a medium-large start nozzle. Try to push it down to the tip, before squeezing it in the bag. Otherwise you end up loosing dough that could make another churro!

3. Gently squeeze the dough out of the piping bag, over the oil, until about 4-5cm is hanging out, then cut off with either a sharp knife, or cooking scissors, into the oil. It's a good idea to stand back a little when doing this, because sometimes the oil can splash. And definitely don't do this naked.

4. Fry in the oil, a few at a time, for 5 or 6 minutes, stirring/turning with metal tongs, until golden. 

5. Take out of the oil, drain on paper towel, then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar (white/caster sugar, with a sprinkling of ground cinnamon).

Delicious right?

Then, dip in your choice of sauce, and enjoy!

*Allergens/Vegetarian*

 - If making these for any vegetarians, first make sure they're okay eating eggs, and make sure if you make either of the sauces, that you purchase cream with no gelatin.

 - If making for people with allergies/intolerance's to:

•  Wheat - You can use gluten free flour with very minimal difference in texture or taste.
• Eggs - Unfortunately an egg substitute isn't really suitable for this recipe, so I would advise against eating them.

These are such a simple yet delicious dessert!

If you have any other dipping sauce recipes, feel free to share them!

Love,

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week 12ish - Potato, Pumpkin & Leek Soup

It's coming into those colder months, where I just want to snuggle on the couch with a bowl of delicious soup, and listen to records.

Thankfully, soup is one of the easiest things to cook! I was going to make just plain potato and leek soup, but realised I had a chunk of pumpkin in the fridge too, so thought I'd throw that in as well.

The base recipe for this soup came from Alex, who loves soup even more than I do (I didn't think it was possible).

Potato, Pumpkin & Leek Soup

700gm Potato, chopped into small cubes
200gm Pumpkin, also cut into cubes
2 leeks, finely sliced
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2tbsp oil/butter
4 cups vege stock
1.5c cups water
seasoning

1. Soften leek and garlic with a bit of oil and butter, until sauteed.
2. Add diced veges and cook down for 5-10 mins (depending on the size).
3. Add stock and water, mix to combine.
4. Cook everything down, until veges are soft, about 15 mins
5. Take off the heat and blitz with a stick mixer until desired consistency is reached.

We add extra garlic!

Diced pumpkin

All the ingredients!

Action shot!

Now, I'll be honest, it's not the prettiest soup in the world, but it sure is hella tasty!

Got a favourite soup receipe? Let me know! I'd love to find some new creations to add to my collection.

Love

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week 5 Through To Week 10 - Dumplings

Okay, so I missed a few weeks! So sue me! I've been very busy lately, cooking, cleaning, travelling (no where interesting of course), being an awesome girlfriend and a hard worker.

But of course, every time I have cooked something interesting, I've forgotten to take photos and write an actual post. I feel like a terrible mother, promising her child something delicious and amazing, then ignoring their pleas for attention... How awkward!

Over the weeks, we've cooked numerous things such as:

• Mediterranean Chicken Salad
• Fire Pit Roast Potatoes
• Dukka Encrusted Lamb
• Dumplings

The most recent being the dumplings, is clearly the easiest thing for me to remember!

Last night, Justin and I, sitting at home debating on what to have for dinner, finally decided to just walk around the supermarket until something took our fancy. Not always the best idea, especially when I'm hungry, but what other choice did we have? 

Upon our walk, we threw ideas around like; bacon and eggs, fish and chips, frozen pies. Until... we walked past the fridges, and I saw the wanton wrappers.

We could totally make dumplings, right? How hard could it be?!!?

Justin found a recipe online, and we went off, finding all of our ingredients.

Dumplings

1 Pkt Wanton wrappers

1 can water chestnuts, finely sliced

75gm bamboo shoots, finely sliced

250gm pork mince (we used the pork & beef mince)

75gm bean shoots

2 or 3 leaves of bok choi, finely sliced

1 tsp salt

Mix everything together, pile a teaspoon of mix in the centre of a wrapper, wet the edges of the wrapper with a finger, then close the edges up.

There are a few different ways to seal the edges:

  - Like little pocket hankies

 - In an 'X'

 - In plain triangles

 - Or scrunch them up like money bags

It all depends on the shape of the wanton wrappers, ours were square, so we went with the X design. You can also make your own dough, which is just water and flour.

You can cook them in a couple of ways also, boiling, steaming, or frying.

We have recently bought a Chinese bamboo steaming basket thingy, so decided to steam our dumplings.

We did however, make one mistake. We didn't prep the steamer, so EVERYTHING stuck to it. We haven't yet worked out how to fix this issue, but we figure if we soak the steamer in water for a little while before hand, it should stop the wrappers from sticking to it.

We steamed ours for 10 minutes, and served them with a soup (for Justin), and dipping sauce for me. We're yet to perfect the dipping sauce though, Justin kept adding sesame oil, and then that overpowered everything else! So, back to the drawing board for that.

Hope you've all been well! I'll try and post a few more recipes over the next couple of days, but this time, no promises!

Love, 

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week Four - Peanut Butter Cup Icecream

Yup, we made ice cream! Though this time it was mum and I slaving away in the kitchen. But really, what a better way to spend the last few horribly hot days?!?!

Anyway, we used mums new fandangled ice cream maker!



Mum was so excited about getting to use her new toy, that we completely forgot to take photos of our adventure... My bad!

Anyway, mum didn't read the recipe before she went shopping, so she came home with double cream, and natural peanut butter (we ended up having to buy normal peanut butter and then used that instead). I would advise against these, it makes the ice cream so thick and sickly sweet. 

Makes about 6 cups (twelve ½-cup servings)

1 cup good quality peanut butter (not natural)
²∕³ cup granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream (Pouring cream)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped chocolate peanut butter cup candies 
(about 15 miniature peanut butter cups)

1. In a medium mixing bowl, use a hand mixer on low speed 
to combine the peanut butter and sugar until smooth. 
Add the milk and mix on low speed until the sugar is 
dissolved, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream 
and vanilla. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours, or 
overnight. 

2. Turn on the Cuisinart® ice cream maker; pour the mixture 
into freezer bowl and let mix until thickened, about 15 to 
20 minutes. Five minutes before mixing is completed, 
add the chopped candy through the top and let mix in 
completely. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy 
texture. If a firmer consistency is desired, transfer the ice 
cream to an airtight container and place in freezer for 
about 2 hours. Remove from freezer about 15 minutes 
before serving.


Delicious peanut butter ice cream

All in all, I enjoyed it, but I could only have a few spoonfulls!

Anyway, stay tuned for our next delicious cooking adventure!


Love, 

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week Three - Lamb Roast

I know what you're thinking, "You've never cooked a roast?".

Well no, not a proper roast.

So on Wednesday night, Justin and I went on a culinary adventure! I stopped off at Safeway on the home and grabbed a few things, then I was homeward bound! With very little basic knowledge, and an enthusiastic attitude, we set to work!

Our initial aim was just to make something filling for dinner. Then we went a little crazy and decided to throw flavours into the mix! We ended up with Lemon, Garlic, Rosemary Roast Lamb, with roast potatoes, carrots & parsnips, served with steamed green beans.

Ingredients:

1kg Lamb roast
1 lemon
5 peeled & finely chopped cloves of garlic
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil

What ever vegies you feel like at the time, diced to approx 2cm size, drizzled with olive oil.




I know, from the ingredients, it looks pretty basic, but sometimes simple is best. 

So, first we need to preheat the oven to 180 deg C. We were going to cook our roast according to directions on the packet (which for us was 1hr per kilo of meat, at 180 deg c).

Now that the oven is heating up, we can start on the marinade for the lamb. We need to finely grate the zest of the lemon, finely chop the rosemary and garlic, then miz it all together with salt, pepper, and oil. 

Next, it's time to start using our hands! Start by massaging the mix into the meat. It's okay if you leave it (the meat) to soak for a few minutes while you prep other things (I prepped my vegies that were going to be roasted).

So, once you're ready to throw everything in the oven, we put the vegies and meat in at the same time, place the lamb on a top rack, with the dish of vegies underneath to catch all the delicious juices. 

Now we can sit down and relax, while the oven does all the work!

Feel free to make a gravy from all the scrumtious juices left over, the flavours are amazing.





Not gonna lie, it makes pretty damn delicious left overs!

Also, I know this post was VERY late, and I apologise for that, I'm trying to catch up on everything :)

Much love, 

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week Two - Steak, Mushroom & Red Wine Pie

Mmmm mmmm mmmm! Pie! Everyone loves pie!

We made pie! From scratch, pastry and everything! Look, a little spoiler for you... It was delicious. I found this delicious recipe on a fellow Blogger blog Exclusively Food.



Firstly, you want to start with meat that is designed for slow cooking. For our pie, we used gravy steak, but you could use chuck steak too.

If you want to make your own pastry, I suggest making it now, because it will need some time (about 2 hrs) to 'rest' in the fridge. 

Prep Time: 30 mins
Initial Cooking: 2.5hrs
Additional Cooking: 15-20 mins

40ml (2 tablespoons) oil
850g trimmed beef chuck or blade (or similar cut of meat), cut into bite-sized pieces
1 large (about 200g) onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves (about 17g total), peeled and crushed
24g (1 tablespoon) tomato paste
125ml (1/2 cup) red wine
375ml (1 1/2 cups) beef stock (we use a low salt stock)
335ml (1 1/3 cups) water
20ml (1 tablespoon) worcestershire sauce
2 bay leaves (fresh or dried)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or 1/3 teaspoon dried thyme leaves)
Salt and pepper, to taste (we use about 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper)
300g mushrooms (cup or flat mushrooms)
24g (2 tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
20ml (1 tablespoon) water
2 sheets puff pastry (each about 25cm by 25cm)
2-3 sheets shortcrust pastry (each about 25cm by 25cm)

Preheat oven to to 180 deg C.

Method:

We need to first brown the meat. We did it in two batches, to avoid stewing. Once it's all browned, set it aside.

Now throw in your onions, and brown them off. Add your garlic and tomato paste, stirring till combined. 

Pour in the red wine and bring to the boil. Add stock, water,  Worcestershire  sauce, meat, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir and cover, on a low heat, simmering for 2hrs, or until the meat is tender.

Add your chopped mushrooms to the pot, return to the simmer, and cook until mushrooms are cooked, or meat is protruding over the liquid. 

Stir through the cornflour (mixed with a little water), and return to simmer. Cook for 1 minute, then remove from heat.

Spoon into your prepared pie dish (We used a family sized glass Pyrex dish, but the original recipe calls for individual metal pie tins, just use whichever is easier for you). Place in the oven, and bake until the pastry is golden. 

Enjoy!

A quick note: Try to let the pie cool for a few minutes before taking it out of the dish, or cutting it. It will help the contents to settle, and will be easier to eat (because no one enjoys scolding hot meat, all up in their mouth...).

For more information on the original recipe:

http://www.exclusivelyfood.com.au/2011/01/beef-and-mushroom-pie-recipe.html

Love

Jayde xx

Challenge 2014 - Week One - Cheeseburger Soup

Yes, you read right. We made "Cheeseburger Soup".

No, we didn't blend a few cheeseburgers and chug it down, that would be gross!

What we made was in a world of its own. I was given the recipe a couple of days ago, and I just couldn't shake it. The though of mince and cheese in a soup was haunting my dreams. 

When we started on this venture, everything seemed to be going well, until we added the herbs to the vegies, then the stock, then the mince. Justin and I just looked at each other in disbelief, "We couldn't possibly eat this mess...could we?". I still had hope, I didn't want to give up yet. 

It definitely did not improve once we added the cheese and milk, but we soldiered on. Man am I glad we did! The soup is chunky and delicious, and was just the right mix of cheesy goodness. Even though it's creamy, the stock helps cut through that. It would be perfect on a cold winters day, curled up on the couch with a blanket and a good movie.

(Sadly we were so preoccupied with cooking this oddity, that we forgot to take photos. So the shots are from the website listed below.)

Ingredients

500mg beef mince
3/4 cup diced onion
3/4 cup grated carrots
3/4 cup diced celery
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley flakes
4 tbsp butter, divided
3 cups chicken stock
4 cups diced peeled potatoes 
1/4 cup plain
2 cups grated cheese
1-1/2 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup sour cream

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, brown beef; drain and set aside. In the same saucepan, saute the onion, carrots, celery, basil and parsley in 1 tablespoon butter until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the stock, potatoes and beef; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
2. Meanwhile, in a small pot, melt remaining butter. Add flour; cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until bubbly. Add to soup; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the cheese, milk, salt and pepper; cook and stir until cheese melts. Remove from the heat; blend in sour cream.

I would certainly make this again!

Stay tuned for more cooking adventures!

Love 

J xx

Challenge 2014 - Week One - Mac n Cheese

Week One - Mac n Cheese

Alrighty, so we started week one off with a cheesy bang! I wanted something simple to try. Something that I had eaten before, but not made. I figured if I had eaten it before, it meant I had something to compare it to. 

Ingredients

500gm pasta
1 1/2 cups full cream milk
2 tablespoons plain flour
2-3 cups grated cheese,
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon mustard powder

1. Cook the pasta till it's el dente. Drain and set aside.
2. Warm 1 cup of the milk, and whisk the flour and rest of the milk in a separate bowl. When the milk on the stove is steaming, add the milk/flour mix and whisk till smooth and thick.
3. Add the cheese and seasoning and continue to whisk. The sauce till become thick and creamy.
4. Mix the sauce in with the pasta and enjoy!

We used cheddar, Parmesan, and colby cheese

Cook extraordinaire!  

Let the sauce and pasta combine!

Ta Da!

So overall it was pretty easy to make. Though I think next time I might make a roux for the base of the sauce, as the flour didn't quite cook off. We didn't have mustard powder, so made do with actual mustard. Next time I would add more salt, and get some actual mustard powder.  

Not sure what we're going to make next week, but stay tuned for more!

Love

J xx

Challenge Yourself

So, being the brand new year (holy crap it's 2014 already?!?!), I've decided to set myself a challenge. Probably one of many to come, but it's a start at least.

As you may or may not know by now, I love food and cooking. I also love to learn. So I've decided to challenge myself to learn how to cook something new every week. It can be anything, from something small like cookies, to a full on meal. But I have to have never cooked it before. I have so many amazing cook books, including some excellent home made ones, and I only ever pull them out for the same old recipes.

I think it will be interesting to see how long it takes me to get bored, or start giving palming food off to my friends....

Along the way, I want to share some tips and tricks, so all of you, my lovely readers, can learn something new. 

So, stay tuned for a new receipe next week, including the highs and lows (and probably failure).

Love 

J xx

Make It At Home

You may have noticed by now, that I try to make a lot of things myself, rather than buying them. these can include cleaning products.

I know it sounds like a strange idea, to make your own cleaning products. But when you think about it, before all of these big companies 'sold' the idea of '99.9% germ free', we cleaned with good old hot water and soap.

In our modern times, there are so many different options available. Just try walking down the cleaning/laundry isle at your local supermarket. We are spoilt rotten for choice! There are different scents, different types, different mediums, from lemon sprays, to infused cleaning wipes, to tablets and foams. I had never realised just how many different products i used in my house, and the horrible chemicals they contained, until I actually went looking.

I would like to sa I have been converted, and my way of thinking has changed, and I would also like to share these ideas with you.

So, stay tuned for new receipes for things for you to try at home. 

Talk soon,

Jayde xx