brown rice salad

I think I should rename this super foods salad. It has so much goodness it's ridoink. Not to mention it's quick to make and amazingly delicious. I make a batch of this on the weekend and take it for my lunch over the next couple of days. It gets better as it gets older because the sultanas (or cranberries) plump up with the moisture. It's riffing on the same theme as all my other salads, that's because there is a method to my madness. Protein, carbohydrates and the 5 tastes. YUM YUM.

ingredients
1 cup brown rice, cooked (yields about 2 cups)
1 tin brown lentils, rinsed
1 tin butter beans (or chickpeas), rinsed
1/4 cup sultanas
1/2 cup almonds, roughly chopped
a small handful of parsley, roughly chopped
1 small carrot, diced finely
1 tbsp of shredded seaweed
1/4 small spanish onion, finely diced
pinch of salt

method
1. Combine! I finish it in many ways, sometimes just with sesame or olive oil. Other times with kecap manis. At the moment I am sprinkling with Maldon smoked sea salt and lemon olive oil (OMG AMAZING).

barley, tomato and garlic risotto

I've been kind of obsessed with pearl barley lately. Just adding handfuls to soup here and there. It's so delicious and toothsome. I wondered aloud whether it would make an AMAZE risotto and I got flooded with responses!! My favourite (of course) featured an Ottolenghi link. This was made THAT afternoon. So delicious and exactly what I needed! I've modified the recipe quite a bit but I'm sure you'll love it.

recipe modified from Ottolenghi's Guardian column

ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 whole head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
5 large fresh tomatoes
3 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 tsp smoky paprika
a few shakes of tabasco
1 tsp dried thyme
2 strips fresh lemon zest (sliced thinly)
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup pearl barley, well rinsed in cold water and drained
1 cup of water
chopped coriander to finish (to your taste)
1 tbsp of pine nuts

method
1. Plop tomatoes into a saucepan of boiling water for a few minutes until their skins start to break. Put tomatoes into a sink of cold water and leave for a few minutes their skins will start peeling away. Rub off the skins and chop tomatoes roughly.

2. In a large saucepan or cast iron pot, heat the olive oil on high and fry garlic cloves until they start to take a bit of colour.

3. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, paprika, tabasco, thyme, lemon zest, sugar, salt, pearl barley and 1/2 of the water to the pot. Simmer for about 40 minutes until the barley is 'al dente' chewy but cooked. Make sure there is always enough water to cook the barley adding a bit and giving a stir every now and then. There should still be a bit of liquid at the end (see photo).

4. Finish the risotto off with fresh coriander, a sprinkle of pine nuts, a drizzle of olive oil and some salt and pepper.

pastizzis

I finally rolled of my butt to make the staple Maltese food PASTIZZIS! I was *supposed* to make them for a Byzantine themed bbq on Saturday but after Boozy McFalldown went on the rampage it kind of blew my day out (not kind of - entirely). BUT! I had all the ingredients and once my raging hang over had misted slightly I was craving GREASE. That's how easy these are to make, I made them so revoltingly hung over I could barely stand.

You have to trust me sans cross section that both kinds are in there but I made the traditional curried pea and spinach/ricotta. There's only 3 in that plate for a few reasons:

1. I ate almost everything that came withing reach
2. I found it difficult to get the hang of folding them, these were the final 3 that looked ok

ingredients
1 package of defrosted puff pastry (Borgs brand for authenticity)

curried pea filling (recipe from Taste.com.au)
yields 8 large pastizzis

175g dried green split peas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3 teaspoons mild curry powder
1/2 tsp of salt

1. Rinse peas, pick out any wonky looking ones and cover with cold water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil over high heat then reduce to simmer uncovered, for 30 minutes or until tender. I found I had to top up the water a couple of times so keep an eye on it.

2. In a bit of oil fry up onion and garlic until softened then add curry powder. Combine well then add the peas and 1/4 cup cold water. Cook on medium heat until liquid has evaporated. At this point it just looks like a bunch of split peas and onion, when they cook in the pastry they soften down to that puree you're familiar with.

spinach ricotta filling (recipe from The Voluptuous Vegan)
yields 8 large pastizzis

300 gm of tofu (silken)
1 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp of light miso paste
handful of steamed spinach (or I used 1/4 block of frozen)

1. Whizz the mixture in a food processor. Voila. (I actually mashed with a spoon)

assemble
1. Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan-forced).

2. Cut frozen pastry sheet into 4 squares. Blob about a tablespoon of your mixture in the middle, you'll learn how much is enough quite quickly. I then pinched the ends (pointy part of pastizzi) and then sealed it by rolling over the pastry on top of each other at the seam. You'll get the hang of it. Spray with a bit of cooking oil or brush with soy milk.

3. Bake for 20/25 minutes until golden.

notes: I'm still having the water release issues from the tofu ricotta (probably because I did nothing to try and change it this time) I still think if you cook the tofu mixture in a saucepan until it releases all that water and drain it off that will fix it. Will keep you updated, till then either try that method or have soggy bottomed tofu ricotta pastizzis.

raw vanilla chocolate torte

The dessert from my raw dinner party. This torte had many sauces and many steps and by the end I couldn't be bothered! So I just whipped some coconut cream and left it at delicious that.

ingredients
yield 1 9 inch pie

the crust
1 1/2 cup pecans
3/4 cup raisins, roughly chopped
2 tbsp coconut oil/butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
Pinch salt

chocolate filling
2 cups raw cashews
1 cup water
2 cup cacao powder (I used cocoa powder)
1 1/2 cup cacao butter, grated
2 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup agave nectar (I used diluted maple syrup)
1⁄2 tbsp lemon juice

coconut cream
1 400gm can of coconut cream (no name brands tend to have the most "cream")
dash of vanilla

method
1. Refrigerate the can of coconut cream for as long as you can (at least a few hours). Open up and scrape the coconut fat from the lid and scoop as much fat from the top of the can as possible. Whip the fat and get it as smooth as possible, adding the vanilla and a couple of tablespoons of the coconut milky water to thin it out. Whip it for a few minutes until light and fluffy and chill while you are making the pie.

2. Make the crust by pulsing all the ingredients until it resembles a crumb. Press into the base of your pan.

3. Make the filling (I melted/softened the cocoa butter in the sun - you could soften over some warm water) by blending the cashews, water, vanilla, agave nectar and lemon juice until smooth.

4. Add the cacao butter and cacao powder and blend to combine.

5. Smooth the chocolate mixture into the pie base and refrigerate to set for at least 2 hours. Serve with a dollop of coconut cream.

tomato and macadami mozzarella pasta

Another winner from the Raw Chef - Russell James' free e-book. I really loved this dish, it was quite light (I find a lot of raw dishes to be heavy) and was really easy to prepare. I'm still getting the hang of my mandoline so my 'linguine' was thicker and harder to handle but it still tasted delicious and even better the next day. The kicker? I have found a way to eat parsnip that I LOVE!

ingredients
yields 4 dishes

linguine
4 medium carrots, peeled
4 medium parsnips, peeled
1/2 tbsp salt
15 large basil leaves, sliced thinly
2 tbsp dried italian seasoning
2c baby plum tomatoes, cut into small sections

macadamia mozzarella
3/4 cup macadamias
3/4 cup cashews
1 tbsp tamari
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)

capsicum sauce
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 capsicum
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp agave (I used maple syrup)

method
1. Slice the carrot and parsnip thinly on a mandoline (or make spaghetti on a spiraler). With the thin strips slice them vertically to make linguine. Combine linguine with salt and let stand whilst you make the mozzarella.

2. Combine mozzarella ingredients in a food processor and blend until creamy. Add extra water if needed to help blend, the mozz should still be thick.

3. Combine all the capsicum sauce ingredients in a food processor until liquified. Add extra water if needed to get a sauce consistency.

4. Rinse the linguine and dry in paper towel or a salad spinner. The linguine should be softer and appear 'cooked'. Toss with the remaining linguine ingredients.

5. Mix in the mozz with the linguine until well combined.

6. Serve with the capsicum sauce drizzled over the stack.

rawsagne

I've been meaning to experiment with more raw food. I had a dinner party coming up and couple that with discovering the Russell James' absolutely amazing website I did the whole party raw. First problem was I didn't read the recipe properly and the original serves 9 people! (who does that?) so I have halved the quantities here. Also I did a 4 course raw meal which took almost 5 hours to prepare so probably won't go that far again OR will prepare the dessert the day before so I'm not spending so much time in the kitchen. It was nice on such a hot day to not have the oven on. Small servings of each went a long way and these core recipes taught me so much about raw food. Hit Russell James' website, sign up to his newsletter and get the free recipe book.

ingredients

walnut meat layer
3/4 cup walnuts, soaked 1 hour or more
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, soaked for 1 hour or more
1 tbsp dark/brown miso
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried sage
2.5 tbsp nama shoyu (I used tamari and would use less next time)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp agave nectar (I used maple syrup)
1 tsp sea salt

tomato sauce
3/4 c sun dried tomatoes, soaked for 1 hour or more
1 soft dates
1 cloves garlic
1 cup tomato, seeded and chopped
3/4 tbsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice

basil pesto
I like my recipe better so use this one.

nut cheese
1 cup macadamias
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 yellow capsicum
2 tbsp fresh parsley
1/2 tbsp fresh thyme
1 tsp salt
1⁄4 cup water as needed

spinach layer
3 cups torn spinach
1.5 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sea salt

lasagne sheets
5 medium zucchinis

method
1. walnut meat layer - pulse ingredients in a food processor till combined but still quite chunky.

2. tomato sauce layer - process in food processor until smooth.

3. nut cheese layer - process all ingredients until fluffy using as little of the water as possible (I found I needed to use it all).

4. spinach layer - toss the spinach in the salt and olive oil and leave to marinate for an hour or more (the spinach should wilt).

5. assembling the whole lasagne - Assemble individually on plates. Slice the zucchinis as thin as you can on a mandolin. Build the lasagne with zucchini, walnut meat, cheese, tomato sauce, pesto then spinach on top. Top with more thin lasagne sheets. Refrigerate to firm up.

notes: Next time I will add more lasagne sheets into the process. I'm still getting the hang of my new mandolin so the sheets are too thick.

lamingtons

Lamingtons! The Aussie favourite, chocolatey, spongey, coconutty goodness. The recipe is pretty standard wherever you look around. Sponge cake with a chocolate icing and some coconut.

recipe
adapted from benno and lara's aussie lamingtons

ingredients
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 1/2 cups plain soymilk
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarb
pinch salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp rosewater/coconut or almond essence

icing mixture recipe
2 cup icing sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp Nuttelex
2 tbsp soy milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
hot water
desiccated coconut


method
1. Preheat over to 180 degrees.

2. Create the buttermilk by combining the soy milk and vinegar in a cup and leaving to curdle.

3. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl (flour, sugar, bicarb, salt).

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well (vanilla, rosewater essence, buttermilk mixture and oil).

5. Bake lamingtons in small cupcake pans or friand pans, filling them 3/4 full. Bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

6. Freeze lamington cakes overnight.

7. Make icing mixture, combining the icing sugar, soy milk, vanilla and nuttelex in a large bowl (I used a lunch box). Add a tsp of hot water at a time until icing reaches desired consistency. The icing should be quite thin.

8. Fill another bowl with coconut for coating. Using 2 forks in each bowl dip the sponges in the icing, let it drip off then coat with the coconut. Settle in the fridge for half an hour.

notes: I wanted extra chocolatey lamingtons so I soaked them in the chocolate icing for quite some time. I think these would be great with some booze like kahlua or frangelico.

gnocci with blue cheezly and broccolini

Last week I had a real craving for comfort food. Real comfort food - carb loaded, creamy, dreamy, sleepy comfort food. In the effort to clear out my cupboards I had a carton of Isola rice cooking cream that had been hanging about for 6 months so it was time it got used.

I consider mock meat junk food and barely eat it, I also try and avoid wheat and heavily process foods BUT blue cheezly is the best vegan version of a food I miss EVER. It tastes so much like blue cheese its FREAKY. The rice cream is also really good, I was surprised. This meal turned out to be the most decadent post vegan meal I've ever had.

ingredients
yields 4 medium meals
1 carton of Isola rice cooking cream
1/2 stick of blue cheezly, grated
gnocchi for 4 people*
1/2 bunch of broccolini, sliced thinly

method
1. Heat the rice cream on low and add the blue cheezly, it should be all melted and hot by the time the gnocchi has finished cooking.

2. Throw the gnocchi in salted boiling water, when it rises to the top its cooked.

3. Toss the gnocchi in the sauce and add the broccolini. The heat will be enough to cook the broccolini.

notes: Store bought dried gnocchi is vegan, I use 2 handfuls per person for a serving.
style points: For extra deliciousness add 1/4 block of smoked tofu, cubed small to the heated cream sauce.

coconut yoghurt

This was one of those experiments that rejuvenates my passion for cooking. This recipe took a lot of research, reading and pondering as to how I was going to try it. Essentially you heat up the coconut milk (to what temp is debatable, if it's fresh out of the can there shouldn't be any bacteria to kill off like dairy milk) but it needs to be 40ish degrees when you add the starter, then kept warm at the same temperature for anywhere between 12 and 24 hours. It has the same variables as making bread, in the winter it will take longer in the summer shorter. The starter grows the "good bacteria", it cools down then thickens and you refrigerate and it thickens some more.

I chose to follow this website as it seemed to be the most knowledgeable. I was out all night but constantly fretting about it and texting my flatmate (bless her) to take temperature measurements of the water bath. In the end I let it go but DID wake up at 4am out of anxiety to check on it (yeah yeah I'm special) anyway here is what I did (I strongly suggest you do a lot of reading on the subject, personally I think I fluked it, I wont know until I try again). The results by the way? Well look at the picture, you stuck a spoon in and it was thick like pot set Greek yoghurt. Unbelievable.

ingredients
3 cans coconut cream
1/8 tsp dairy free probiotic* (I used Inner Health Plus dairy free)
1 tbs maple syrup
2 tsp agar powder

method
1. Steralise your yoghurt jars, bowls and anything that will touch the yoghurt with boiling water (I leave them submerged in the boiling water till it cools).

2. Heat coconut milk in a saucepan to 80 degrees (you will need a sugar thermometer) then add maple syrup and agar.

3. Let your coconut cream cool to 40-45 degrees, remove 1/4 cup of the coconut cream and mix in your probiotic, then combine back into the coconut cream in the pot.

4. Pour the coconut cream into your jars and cover with a lid (they say to not use metal lids) and let the coconut cream ferment at 40-45 degrees between 8 and 24 hours. How I kept mine warm was in a water bath in my crock pot. I used the initial heat from the coconut cream and some warm water to keep it warm/desired temperature. However I turned the crock pot on low at 4am as it had become almost cold and woke back up at 8am and turned it off but was convinced it had kept the milk too hot (the water was almost 60 degrees) so I thought I had destroyed the batch. The milk had separated into milk and water and was as thin when I started, I mixed it all back together but was pretty devastated. I went back and hour later to throw it away and it had set fully (like jelly) while it was cooling. I was blown away.

So maybe this was a fluke? Maybe using agar is the big difference from others experiments? *It wasn't as sour as I would have liked it to be so next time I'm going to bump up the probiotic - Ive seen as much as 1tsp per can of coconut milk. If you attempt this do let me know, I'd be keen to hear your variables and results. Actually now I would recommend adding a tbsp of soy yoghurt instead of inner health plus, cheaper and better results.

dhal

I assure you this dhal tastes far better than it looks. It's one of those things that's just impossible to photograph nicely (thrown DOWN DONNA HAY). With the impending arrival some months ago of my flatmate and my kitchen having been quartered in the new house I had to get rid of my enormous stock pile of ingredients. So, I went on a dhal binge (my colon thanked me repeatedly). Red lentils, yellow lentils and split peas were all mashed into this yummy recipe. I find myself going to taste.com.au a lot. They have such great basic recipes and the user ratings really help. Ok so I lied, taste.com.au have a pretty nice photo of dhal. Just waiting to get a DSLR (cmmoooon December) and then I will be cooking with gas.... or taking photos with a DSLR are it were.

I want to experiment with this recipe so so much, like make it a little thicker and mould into patties, crumb, fry and shove into a burger with mango chutney, use as a ravioli filling or thin out and use as a dip with some vegan raita. I just need some time to recover.

recipe from taste.com.au

ingredients
1 cup (300g) red lentils, rinsed well
3cm fresh ginger, sliced
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
3 cups of water
2 tbs of vegan margarine
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garam marsala
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
2 tbs lemon juice
1/2-1 tsp salt
1 tbs chopped coriander leaves
rice or quinoa to serve
Naan bread or pappadums, to serve

method
1. Bring the lentils, ginger, bay leaves, cinnamon and water to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer for about 10 minutes. Give it a little stir often to prevent it sticking to the bottom. Bin the ginger, bay leaves and cinnamon.

2. In a large fry pan saute the onions in the nuttelex until they go translucent (medium high heat). Stir in the garlic, turmeric, cumin, garam marsala and chilli flakes and cook for a further minute or until fragrant. Stir in the lemon juice and season to taste with salt.

3. Mix the lentils in with the spice mixture. Cook on high, stirring constantly to reduce any water left. Stir in coriander and serve hot with naan bread or pappadums.