Tag: salad

Roast butternut & rocket salad

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Our veggie garden has been delivering some yummy goods for the past month or so, including a few giant varieties… Well, sadly, it is coming to an end now and I need to plant new seeds. Sweet basil is still thriving and so are the tomatoes {except that something is eating it!}, but everything else is starting to come to an end.
I picked these butternuts – they were HUGE but didn’t really look like butternuts, so I thought, well let me use it and see how it turns out…

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Turns out, these taste almost like normal butternuts, or a cross between a regular butternut and baby marrow, and they’re just much lighter and sort of longer…
Anyways – I’ll have to read up on this variety.
Here they are in my roast butternut & rocket salad – simple and delicious:

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Cut the butternut and drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and your favourite ‘sprinkle’. {I used Peppadew spice.}
Roast for an hour at 180C until they’re tender. Just before they’re done, add some pine nuts and return to the oven to finish roasting.
Let it cool slightly and toss with fresh rocket leaves & olive oil. Season with ground sea salt.
Add a few dollops of cream cheese.
Enjoy! X

All organic garden veggie salad

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I love the simple things in life – if you have to dress it up too much, there’s something not quite right… I prefer to use fewer ingredients, good ingredients, and just let them shine!
The same goes for {in my opinion} clothing, as well as home decor – keep it simple and rather invest in a few good quality and stylish items that will stay pretty and classic for years to come.
Ok, back to the salad…
Our veggie garden has been providing us with some fabulous treats over the past few weeks – butter lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, carrots, {giant} marrows, beetroot, rocket, sweet basil and coriander. The tomatoes are starting to grow, but are still green and I’ll soon be able to pick some gem squash.

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This delicious salad came mostly from my garden, except for the garlic, onions, seeds and feta cheese!

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Take a few carrots, beetroot and baby marrows {or giant ones!}, cut them into strips or wedges, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with freshly ground sea salt and pepper. Add a couple of squashed garlic cloves and sprinkle everything with some Peppadew spice and roast in the oven for about 40minutes at 180C. After 40minutes, add a handful of pumpkin seeds and some pine nuts. Add more olive oil and roast for another 15-20minutes until everything is cooked.
In a pan, sauté 2 sliced onions on low heat in butter and olive oil. When they’re soft, add about a tbs of honey and balsamic vinegar. Let everything caramelise and set aside.

Let the onions and roast veggies cool off before tossing them with some fresh rocket and butter lettuce. Add feta cheese and serve.

Enjoy! X

Moroccan-inspired meatloaf with a Mediterranean salad

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Tonight I made a meatloaf {I know, I know..! But seriously, it can be yum.} with Moroccan-inspired flavours, along with a Mediterranean salad of green beans, roasted red peppers, cherry tomatoes and capers.

As it’s Wednesday and we had running club right in the middle of dinner prep time, I needed to make something in advance that can just be heated up later. It also needed to be something that doesn’t take up a lot of prep time, because I was busy baking some seriously delicious cupcakes {will post recipe and pics tomorrow!} and I’m also trying to cut down on multi-tasking…

http://www.zaparents.com/2013/10/30/multi-tasking-bad-for-moms/

Right, so here’s my recipe for Moroccan-inspired meatloaf with a Mediterranean salad:

For the meatloaf, you will need:

500g mince {I used venison}

1 egg

1 cup of puréed pumpkin

1tsp each of peppadew spice, salt and cumin

2 red chillies, finely chopped

1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped

Mix all together and place in a greased loaf pan and bake at 180C for an hour until cooked through. The meatloaf is quite juicy because of the pumpkin, so you won’t get that brick-like texture!

For the salad, you will need:

4 small red peppers

green beans {about a handful}

cherry tomatoes

capers

olive oil

freshly ground sea salt

red wine vinegar

Roast the peppers by placing under the oven’s grill for 30 minutes, rotating as it blackens. When blackened all around, place in a glass bowl and cover with cling wrap. Let it cool.

Boil beans in salty water until just tender, blanch with cold water. Let it cool.

Once the peppers have cooled, peel off the charred skin and remove the seeds. Tear into strips and toss with the beans. Add cherry tomatoes, leaving some whole and chopping a few. Add the capers, drizzle with olive oil and the vinegar and finish off with a sprinkle of ground sea salt.

Enjoy!

{I would serve the meatloaf with a dried peach and prune compote, but I honestly forgot to make it! Oops..}

Moroccan-inspired meatloaf Mediterranean Red Pepper Salad

Pineapple Roast Chicken & Papaya Salad

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Some people are totally against using fruit in salads or any other main dishes… Not me! I love it! You can do so much – use it in salads, with meats and chicken. It does depend on the fruit, but I do think it really complements meat dishes, just take apples & pork as an example. I’ve been quite inspired by pineapples lately and made a {totally delicious, if I may say so myself..!} pineapple & thyme roast chicken. You will need: 1 whole chicken 1 medium pineapple {peeled & core removed, blitzed in blender} 5 sprigs of thyme freshly ground sea salt & black pepper olive oil Rub the chicken with olive oil and season with salt & pepper. Remove the leaves from 2 of the sprigs of thyme and add to the pineapple. Pour the pineapple slush over the chicken and let it marinade for about an hour before roasting. Pre-heat oven to 180C. Place the remaining 3 thyme sprigs on top of the chicken and roast for an hour until golden and cooked. For the papaya salad: Fresh papaya cubes Fresh basil leaves Grilled plain Halloumi cheese, cubed Sweet corn kernels Chorizo sausages, sliced & grilled Mix together and serve with the pineapple roast chicken. {The natural juice from the papaya is all you need in terms of a dressing!} A perfect Summers dinner – just simple, tasty and fresh! Enjoy! X Papaya & Halloumi salad Pineapple & thyme roast chicken

Aubergine Bites

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Just a quick post with another delicious aubergine recipe.

These little yummies are perfect as a light lunch / dinner or as an appetizer {and so quick and easy to prepare! You can also throw these onto a platter with a few other bits for cocktail hour or a lazy afternoon} enjoy with a fruity white wine:

Grilled aubergine slices {brush with olive oil}

Grilled Russian sausage slices

Butter lettuce leaves

Dipping sauce:

Plain yoghurt

1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped

Cayenne pepper

Cumin

Dash of Tabasco sauce

Assemble bites by placing a piece of grilled aubergine into a lettuce leave, top with sausage slices and tie with string.

Serve with dipping sauce – enjoy! X

Aubergine bites

Build-your-own-salad-platter

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What to dish up on a lazy summers’ afternoon? Why, a build-your-own-salad-platter, of course!

Don’t get me wrong, I love cooking and it fills me with pleasure to whip up delicious things, but sometimes {especially on a lazy Sunday, when you’ve already spent the day sweeping and picking up toys} you just want to be able to snap your fingers and make something appear!

Ah, well, that’s not going to happen soon, so instead, it’s handy to just throw together a platter and let everyone help themselves.

Here’s my seafood salad platter – using items I already had on hand:

Simple salad {lettuce, cucumber cubes & tomato, dressed with olive oil}

Tinned smoked mussels

Smoked snoek {remember to remove the bones!}

Blanched green beans, drizzled with olive oil and capers

Fresh tomatoes {on the vine}

Boiled eggs, seasoned with salt {I boil the eggs for exactly 7 minutes to get a nice soft-boiled egg}

Lemon mayonnaise dressing {just add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to mayonnaise}

Everyone can help themselves to what they want and build their own salad – enjoy with cold white wine or a crisp Savannah!

x

Build-your-own-salad-platter

Meatilicious bake

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I love different meats together – it just seems to add to the taste and make it more exciting! {not always – and not with all meats… Still – just try it out sometime, there are lots of options here!)

For tonight’s bake I layered strips of bacon, tenderised and flattened chicken breast, pork roast meat, mozzarella cheese and more bacon.

I seasoned the chicken breast with freshly ground sea salt and olive oil then layered on the pork roast meat. {This I had leftover from a roast I made a week ago – and froze the leftovers – it also had an apple & sage stuffing.} I added freshly ground fennel seeds,another layer of chicken breast, then thick slices of mozzarella cheese and more bacon.

{You could use any cooked pork meat, a leftover roast or even some pork chops…}

Bake at 180C for 45 minutes – this is just enough time to ensure the chicken is cooked properly but is still juicy.

I served this with a sundried tomato & goats cheese salad. {Mixed lettuce leaves, diced cucumber, sundried tomatoes, goats cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.}

I prefer salads with less but more ‘punchy’ ingredients – like they say, less is more!  And forget elaborate salad dressings – you want to taste the salad, right?! My current favourite dressings are vinegars and olive oil – perhaps with a splash of fresh minneola juice {now in season} and honey to bring out the flavours of the salad. And nuts – yum, I love nuts in salad! Raisins are great too!

Ok, before I get too carried away – here’s a pic of my meatilicious bake and my youngest, ‘helping’ me in the kitchen today…

Enjoy! X

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#BraaiDay – Roast Pork Neck with Apple & Sage stuffing

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Our Braai Day feast consisted of:

Corn bread & chicken liver paté for starters

Roast (and lightly smoked) pork neck stuffed with Apple & Sage

Roast beet & goats cheese salad

Buttery roasted sweet potato

Peach tart for dessert

Roast Pork:

2kg deboned pork neck

Woolworths BBQ rub (a brown sugar & coriander rub)

2 large granny smith apples, peeled, cored & cubed

butter

4 slices of thick white bread, crusts removed and cubed

8 fresh sage leaves

handful of dried apples

olive oil

brown sugar

1 onion, diced

1 egg, beaten

Slice pork neck open length-wise, but not all the way through – you should be able to fold open and have one large piece of pork.

Deboned pork neck

Rub with olive oil and BBQ rub – I used about half a pot – inside and outside. Fold the pork neck closed, place in a casserole, clingwrap and refrigerate overnight.

In a skillet or casserole, sauté onions, apples & sage until soft. Remove from heat and add bread, salt & pepper, egg and half a cup of brown sugar. Let this mixture cool before stuffing the pork.

Remove pork from fridge a while before stuffing, allowing it to get to room temperature.

Fold open the pork and spread stuffing mixture over the entire piece of pork.

Stuffing on pork

Roll up up gently, keeping all the stuffing inside. Fasten with string or secure with toothpicks.

Roast or smoke for 2 hours at 120C. (We smoked it low & slow, just to give it a hint of smokiness – but you can just roast it too.)

Roast pork

Roast beet & goats cheese salad:

Place beets into a casserole & rub with olive oil, balsamic & salt. Roast until tender (2hrs). Let them cool, peel and cut into quarters.

Toss cooled en roasted beets with mixed salad leaves, goats cheese chunks and ribboned cucumber. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts and serve with olive oil & balsamic vinegar.

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Buttery sweet potatoes:

Cut sweet potatoes into quarters, place dollops of butter on top and inbetween, sprinkle with peppadew spice and roast for 2hrs with the pork (in a separate casserole).

Corn bread: (recipe from Sarie.com)

500g self-raising flour

3ml salt

50ml sugar

30ml sunflower oil

2 eggs – beaten

200ml evaporated milk

1 can of creamed corn

100g grated cheddar

1tbs chopped parsley

Mix flour, salt & sugar. Whisk together oil, eggs & milk and add to flour mixture. Add rest of ingredients and mix well.

Place in a greased black ‘braai’ pot and bake on the coals (also place hot coals on top of the lid) for an hour.

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Chicken liver paté: 

1kg chicken livers, cleaned

1 onion

1 cup of brandy

salt & pepper

1/2 cup of cream

bay leaves

butter

Soak chicken livers in brandy for an hour (do not discard liquid). Sauté onions in butter until soft. Remove livers from brandy. Add to onions and fry until cooked and no longer pink. Season with salt & pepper. Add cream. Transfer to blender and blend to a smooth consistency. Add the brandy that you soaked the livers in. Add half a cup of butter (soft) and blend until properly mixed.

Pour into desired dishes and top with melted butter and a bay leaf – refrigerate overnight.

Serve with corn bread.

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Peach tart:

1 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of butter

1/4 cup of milk

1 cup of flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 eggs

3 dessert peaches

Cream together sugar & butter. Add milk And mix. Add eggs and mix again. Sift together flour, baking powder & salt and add to egg mixture. Place in greased tart dish, top with thinly sliced peaches and bake at 180C for 40 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

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Enjoy! X

Nicoise Salad

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Nicoise Salad

Does anyone else feel lazy on a Monday night..? Sort of still in weekend mode, and to top it all, the fridge is kinda empty too and we seem to have just skipped spring altogether and gone straight into summer – so salad it is!

(I cannot wait for our veggies to finally start growing and to be able to just pick whatever I want straight from the garden!  Hubby has made a fabulous vegetable garden and is still busy planting… (The chickens keep digging up and eating all the seeds!)  Anyways, that’s about 3-4 months away from reality and until then I’ll have to make do with shop-bought veggies.

So this is what I rustled up tonight – my take on a Niçoise salad, using sardines:

2 tins of Portugese sardines in vegetable oil (remove bones from middle)

3 hard boiled eggs, halved

lettuce

small plum tomatoes, quartered

olives

danish feta cheese

capers

olive oil

Red wine vinegar

Toss together, season with freshly ground salt & black pepper and enjoy! X

Warthog Roast

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Big Green Egg

What a fab day – sunny Joburg with good friends, good wine & good food!

We tried out a new recipe today for warthog (I’ve never made or eaten warthog before…) from Shiny Happy People by Neil Roake (I love this cookbook!).

1 leg of venison (bush pig – I used warthog)

5 onions peeled & quartered

2 thumb-sized pieces of fresh ginger, peeled & crushed

freshly ground salt & black pepper

olive oil

200ml sherry

225g quince cheese (quince jelly)

Rub meat with olive oil, salt & pepper.  In a large casserole, brown meat on all sides & set aside.  Add onions & ginger to the same casserole used to brown the meat and sauté.  Add sherry to deglaze.  Return the meat to the casserole and add random dollops of the quince jelly.  Cover and slow-roast in a pre-heated oven of 160C For 3-4 hours.

Now, I adapted this recipe slightly by doubling all the quantities (except the onions) because of the huge piece of meat I used.  Also, we roasted it in our Green Egg.

The result – delicious and slightly sweet meat!  Next time I would just add more liquid halfway through the cooking process and have the temperature even lower – maybe at 120C for 4 hours.  The sauce was just a tad bit too reduced for me… But still delicious nonetheless!

Warthog roast

Sides:

Mielies (corn on the cob) with butter – always a braai favourite!

Roast beets with balsamic vinegar, olive oil & feta cheese

Scrumptious salad with roasted tomato & Danish feta with avocado – made by my friend Karin

Dessert:

Summer Berry Pavlova

This might just be my all-time favourite dessert – and healthy too! (Just egg whites & fruit… Oh yes, and a bit of cream and sugar too… Just a bit ;))

Summer Berry Pavlova

6 egg whites

pinch of cream of tartar

1.5 cups of castor sugar

1.5 tsp corn starch

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 tsp red wine vinegar

Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form.  Add sugar slowly, along with the corn starch & salt until glossy and stiff peaks form.  Fold in vanilla & vinegar.  Place on baking paper, in a round or oval shape.  Bake at 120C for 1.5 hours and let it cool in the oven.

Top with sweetened whipped cream (I use regular cream, whipped with castor sugar), fresh strawberries (cut and sprinkled with castor sugar), blueberries, gooseberries & pomegranate seeds.  Dust with icing sugar, serve & enjoy!

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