Bitter Sweet Recipes

This recipe was given to me quite few years back by a friend’s mum when we went to stay on their farm in central Queensland.

Its very quick, easy and tasty and is surprisingly filling. It can be served as a posh starter to a meal, or, as I prefer, in a big warm bowl on a lazy night in front of the TV.

This recipe yields 2 large serves or 4 small starter serves. It is best eaten on the day of cooking, but you can keep it in the fridge for about a day if you like.

INGREDIENTS

Half a head of Cauliflower
Generous teaspoon of Crushed Garlic
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
pinch of nutmeg
2 vegetable stock cubes or about 3 cups of veggie stock
3 tablespoons of grated parmesan
a knob of butter
1/2 cup cream (or milk)
salt and pepper

METHOD

Cut the Cauliflower into medium sized chunks.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan with the garlic. Add the cauliflower and stir until the cauliflower is lightly browned.

Add in your veggie stock and nutmeg then simmer until the cauliflower is soft (about 5 minutes).

Using a stick mix (or your blender, carefully!) puree until it is no longer lumpy.

Add the parmesan, butter and cream. Puree again until combined. Taste your soup and season as needed. Warm again slightly before serving.

VARIATIONS

You can make a healthy variation of this soup by omitting the butter, reducing the parmesan (or using low fat cheese) and using light milk instead of cream. If you do this you may need to add in 2 teaspoons of corn flour to thicken the soup up.

So I know everyone has their own recipe for a baked dinner… but I thought I would share mine anyway.

I grew up in a house where pork crackling was coveted by every member of the family, when I was younger and we had pork roast at grandmas house my aunt and mum would sneak into the kitchen and steal the crispiest bits of crackle before they even made it to the table!
Everyone would get their piece of crackling and save the best till last, all you could hear at the end of the meal was the crunch of crackle between our teeth and the remnants of the salty fat being sucked off our fingers.

I was vegetarian for about 10 years as a teenager and have also grown very fond of all kinds of roasted veggies. Now when I make a roast I include whatever veggies are in the pantry; sweet potato, carrot, potato, onion, capsicum, pumpkin, aubergine, zucchini… the list goes on. I cook my roast veggies very plainly with cloves of garlic, a good glug of olive oil and thyme leaves sprinkled over the top (fresh is preferred, however, my herb garden is looking a little sad at the moment).
The same goes with cooking the pork, I think with a meat like pork it is best to let the flavour of the meat shine through and then complement it with flavours such as apple sauce (traditional) , cranberry sauce (my favourite) or even mint sauce (my man’s favourite) at the table.

My lovely man bought a very strange cut of pork leg that I haven’t seen before the other day and I was pondering over how to cook it. It says on the packet that it is a ‘bone in roasting leg of pork’ but it appears like a HUGE bone in steak. I was a bit worried that the crackle wouldn’t crackle (because it was around the edges of the meat) so I cut it off and cooked it in a separate pan, and I laid the flesh on top of my veggies for roasting.

I love to always cook excess veggies when I make a roast as I love them the next day on a salad, or just to eat on their own. This will really serve as many as you would like to serve depending on the size of the roast that you get and the volume of veggies that you cook.

INGREDIENTS

Pork Roasting Cut
Olive oil
Garlic
Thyme
Salt

Roasting Vegetables such as;
potato
sweet potato
carrot
pumpkin
onion
garlic cloves
turnip
sweede
zucchini
capsicum
aubergine

Steaming Vegetables such as;
broccoli
cauliflower
green beans
peas
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 220 degrees Celcius, Prepare two baking trays by rubbing generously with olive oil.

Wash, peel and slice your chosen veggies into manageable sized chunks (you want it to all cook at the same time so keep this in consideration when cutting the vegetables)

Prepare the pork rind. I removed the pork rind from this piece of meat because it was around the sides of the meat and I didn’t think it would crackle effectively there. You can leave it on, or cut it off and cook it in a separate tray depending on what you like.

To prepare the rind you must dry it well with a paper towel.

Then rub it with few tablespoons of olive oil.

Finally sprinkle a generous amount of salt onto the rind and rub it in.

Lay the vegetables in a tray and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with thyme leaves, slice the cloves of garlic in half and nestle them in-between the veggies.

Now you can place you roast on top of the veggies like I have or cook it in a separate pan.

I prepare my meat by rubbing it lightly with olive oil, crushed garlic and thyme leaves.

Place the crackle in the oven on 220 degrees Celcius for 20 minutes, it should bubble and spit and start to brown and crackle before your eyes (keep an eye on it).
Turn the oven down to 180 degrees celcius and place your veggies and meat in to the oven  (if they are not already in there). Leave your crackle in there for the remainder of the cooking time.

The general rule is that you need to cook your roast for about 40 minutes per kilo of meat, keep an eye on it towards the end. It may need more or less roasting time depending on the cut of meat (i.e.. if it has a bone or not).

Allow the meat to rest for 15-20 mins before carving. Serve with a platter of your roasted and steamed vegetables as well as all of the necessary condiments.

This is one of the easiest, yummiest soups that I make frequently during winter. Its really the type of soup where the throw all the ingredients in the pot and its ready to eat in about an hour with no fuss.

Its a good soup to freeze in single portions for a quick and easy meal, and the flavour is just as good if not better after freezing. Its also great because its is a hearty winter meal with ingredients that are easy to come by and very economical.

As mentioned above, this soup can be frozen successfully for up to a month, just defrost in the fridge the night before serving and reheat in a pot. You can also store it in the fridge for up to 3 days after cooking. This recipe will serve 6-8 people.

INGREDIENTS

500g of Dried Split green peas
1 Ham Hock
1 Large carrot diced
1 brown onion diced
1 stick of celery diced
2 small dried bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon of mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
3 chicken of vegetable stock cubes
7 cups of water

METHOD

Prepare split peas by rinsing them in water, removing any dicoloured peas and draining well.

Place all ingredients in a large pot and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and allow to simmer for 40-60 minutes, until the peas are soft and the hock is tender.

Remove the hock from the soup and cut off all the excess ham. Discard the fat and the cleaned bone and return the ham flesh to the soup.

Cooked ham hock ready to remove the meat to return to the soup

Remove the Bay Leaves before serving.

Meat from the Hock, returned to the soup

Season to taste and serve with some crusty bread or dinner rolls.

This is one of my favourite dinners at the moment. My mum used to cook it when I was a child, and it was really the only meaty thing that I missed when I turned vegetarian for 10 years.

Its a nice quick asian meal that is really easy to make in your own home.

This recipe serves 4. It cannot be frozen but the cooked chicken will keep in the fridge for 2 days. If you have leftovers they are great to add to a salad for lunch, or to include with some steamed rice in your bento. I find that the chicken does not reheat well, but it is delicious cold anyway.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups Diced Chicken (you can use the meat from breast, thigh, tenderloins etc)
1 cup Plain Flour
Salt and Pepper
1/3 cup Teriyaki Marinade

Steamed rice (to serve)
Steamed Assorted Vegetables (to serve)

METHOD

In a Clean Plastic (or ziplock bag) shake the flour with the salt and pepper. Add the diced chicken and shake until coated.

Heat up 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a hot nonstick frypan and place the pieces of coated chicken in one by one making sure you shake off excess flour.

Brown the pieces on both sides, adding some more oil if needed.

When the chicken is cooked, pour in the teriyaki marinade and shake the pan to coat all the chicken. The flour on the chicken will suck up the marinade and the heat plus the flour will thicken it and it will become saucy.

Shake the pan as you add the teriyaki to coat the chicken

Turn the heat off and let the pan sit for two minutes on the hot plate.

Serve the chicken with Rice and Vegetables.

VARIATIONS

For a more flavourful  japanese feel to the dish , shake a little furikake (japanese rice seasoning) over the rice.

To liven up your steamed veggies, crumble a vegetable stock cube over them before cooking and add some finely sliced chilli, ginger and a sprikle of white and black sesame seeds to serve.

I love bread… all that carbohydratey goodness that you know you really shouldn’t be eating a second helping of but do anyway. Well this is a super easy, super fast, super tasty bread that you wont be able to resist. It uses beer and baking powder as its leavening agents so there is no need to fuss around with dried yeast or prooving time, rising temperature and whatnot.

I think its best if you use a reasonably nice beer (one that you like to drink), in this recipe. While the bread doesn’t taste overly beery when its cooked there will be undertones of the yeasty, hoppy, caramelly beer flavour.

I also like to add some flavourings such as cheese and herb to make it super tasty, but you can change these to suit your tastes. You can also substitute half of the plain flour for rye flour, soy and linseed breadmix flour, or wholemeal flour.

This will make a loaf suitable for 4 people (or 2 people if you are a greedy bread muncher like me). As with any home made breads, due to the lack of preserving agents it wont keep well so you will need to eat it on the day of baking

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of plain flour
1/2 Tablespoon of white sugar
1/2 – 1 Teaspoon Salt
2/3 tablespoon of Baking powder
1 teaspoon thyme (dried or fresh)
1/2 teaspoon oregano (dried or fresh)
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
240ml Beer of your choice

Ingredients (clockwise); Grated Cheese, Plain Flour, Salt, Pepper, Sugar, James Boag Beer, Baking Powder, Thyme, Oregano, Basil, Garlic, Olive Oil.

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius and prepare a bread tin or baking tray lined with baking paper.

In a medium mixing bowl stir all dry ingredients together until well combined.

Pour in the beer and wet ingredients, mix with a spoon (it will foam up) while you are mixing.

It will come together to form a very sticky wet and stiff dough.

Turn the dough out onto your prepared baking tray and, using damp hands, shape it into the desired shape. ( I usually do a loaf shape or a round shape)

Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, until it is browned on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

It is a slightly heavier bread than usual but REALLY delicious.

Slice and serve warm with butter.

... or serve with your favourite (chicken) soup

VARIATIONS

You can really add any flavour combinations that you like, just make sure you get the quantities of the basic dough correct. You can also experiment with different beers too.

This lentil soup is a really tasty warming winter soup. I use green lentils because they tend to retain their shape during the cooking process better than red lentils and they are higher in protein and fiber too.
I think lentils get a bit of a bad rap for being bland boring vegan food, but with the right spices and veggies they are absolutely delicious.

This recipe serves 6, it can be frozen after cooking for up to a month in an airtight container, defrost in the refrigerator for a day and then reheat.

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
2 teaspoons of dried thyme
2 teaspoons of dried oregano
2 bay leaves
2 carrots, finely diced
2 sticks of celery, finely diced
1 medium potato, finely diced
1 cup of green lentils
4 cups of chicken or vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and cook the onion, garlic, thyme and oregano until fragrant.
Add the finely diced vegetables and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes until slightly softened and coated in the herbs.
Stir in the lentils and the chicken stock.

Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 40 minutes until all of the vegetables and lentils are soft and most of the stock is absorbed. You will need to keep an eye on the stock level, and top it up if you think it is becoming too thick.
Season with salt and pepper
Serve with crusty bread a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of smoky paprika.

VARIATIONS

You can really add whatever veggies to this that you like, but I think this is the best combination.

This is a vegetarian recipe… in fact i am pretty sure it is suitable for vegans too. But if you like your meat it also tasted great with 3/4 cup of diced bacon thrown in with the onion.

If you have lots of leftovers you can boil off the rest of the stock until you are left with a very thick lentil mixture, add some curry powder, cayenne pepper and a dash of cream and use this as curried lentil pie filling. Spoon it into the pie dish, top with a trimmed sheet of puff pastry, use an egg wash and bake in a 200 degrees celcius pre heated oven until the pastry is puffed and golden.

This is a recipe my mum used to make when I was growing up and is still one of my favourites today. Its really quick and easy and everyone will love them. They are great hot or cold as a snack, fingerfood or with a garden salad for lunch or dinner.

This will make approximately 12 small triangles or 4 Large logs. The assembled uncooked curry puff can be wrapped in cling film and frozen for about 2 weeks then defrosted overnight in the fridge and baked in a preheated oven. Alternatively it can be kept uncooked in the fridge for 1 day, or cooked in the fridge for 2 days… but trust me they wont last that long!

INGREDIENTS

Filling
2 Cups of coarsely grated carrot (about 3 medium carrots)
1 medium finely diced onion
1 Stick of Finely diced celery
120 grams coarsely grated tasty cheese
1/2 a Red Capsicum finely diced
1/4 cup mayonaise
3 teaspoons Madras Curry Powder
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 egg
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 large tin of tuna drained
salt and pepper

4 sheets of ready rolled puff pastry

1 egg extra, lightly whisked for an egg wash

METHOD

Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius

Mix all filling ingredient together until they are well combined.

Cut sheets of puff pastry into 4 square quarters and place about 2 heaped tablespoons on each quarter.

Using a pastry brush, brush around the edges of the pastry with the egg wash.

Fold the corner over each quarter to form a triangle with the filling inside and press out the air. Push down the edges with a fork and prick the top to allow steam to escape during cooking.

Place filled triangles onto a lined baking tray and brush with a little egg wash.

Bake for 25 minutes until pastry is puffed and golden brown.

Serve with garden salad and tomato sauce on the side. Delicious hot or cold.

VARIATIONS

Filo pastry makes a nice substitute for puff pastry, and will make less of an impact on your waistline. However if you use filo, you will not be able to freeze the uncooked puffs.

Any variety of fillings can be used just make sure the flavours go together and you dice them very small so they will cook properly. Tinned Salmon makes a good substitute for tinned Tuna.

You can make a variety of shapes with the puffs. Small triangles and squares are perfect for single serves, however if you are making a family meal you can also make large logs and slice accordingly.

I love a good curry! Easy to make and tastes even better the next day. There is a fabulous range of curry pastes that are available in the supermarket to save you the bother of making your own, and while it is sometimes nice to make it ‘from scratch’, these bought curry pastes can offer an authentic flavour for those who are time poor or have trouble sourcing good fresh curry spices and flavours.

This veggie curry is a staple in my house, its great because you can really put anything you have on hand into it which makes it a good dish to make when you haven’t been food shopping in a while! I usually make it Vegetarian however you can add your favourite meats for a more hearty meal.

This recipe is enough for 4 very generous servings with leftovers. The flavours will develop overnight so its great to have the next day alternatively it can be frozen in airtight containers for around a fortnight defrost in the fridge overnight before heating and serving.

INGREDIENTS

1 Brown Onion chopped into wedges
2 Medium Carrots cut into rounds
3 Stalks of Celery cut in large pieces
1 1/2 cups cubed pumpkin
1/4 Head of Cauliflower cut into small florets
1/2 cup Green Lentils

This is a rough guide of vegetables that I usually use, if you dont have something on hand its fine to omit it or use something else. Its great with green beans, potato cubes, corn and other veggies too so experiment on what suits your tastebuds.

1 Tablespoon of Oil
1 Tin of Light Coconut cream
3 cups of hot water
Curry paste of your choice ( I like to use Patak’s Korma Curry Paste its nice and mild so suitable for children too)

METHOD

In a large saucepan heat the oil, add onion and curry paste. Saute this until the spices are activated a rich aroma is produced. Some may stick to the base if this happens add a few tablespoons of water to the pan. When the onions are soft and coated in the curry paste add the veggies and raw lentils and stir until they too are coated.

Pour in the hot water and mix well. If you are not using lentils you will not need to add so much water. Turn down the heat, cover and allow to simmer for around 30 minutes until the vegetables and lentils are cooked and the sauce has thickened slightly.

Add the coconut cream until  the taste of the sauce is desirable and the texture is creamy. Bring the heat back up for another 15 minutes and allow the sauce to thicken further.

I like to serve my curry with lots of side dishes including; basmati rice, pappadums, yoghurt and cucumber sauce, chutney, naan bread and banana slices rolled in coconut with sultanas.

VARIATIONS

This recipe can be made with almost any variety of vegetables you have on hand. If you love your meat you can also add cubes of beef, chicken, lamb or even a mild tasting white fish.

Every curry paste will have a different flavour, so experiment to find the flavours and heat intensity that you like.