16 small/medium white potatoes ½ cup unsalted butter, melted, plus more for brushing 32 fresh sage leaves Flakey sea salt
Method
Preheat the oven to 200c.
If you know your Hasselback, prepare as normal, brush with butter and slip 2 sage leaves into each potato. Season with salt.
If you don’t know your Hasselback, peel the potatoes. Place in a medium-depth cooking spoon and slice down thinly, ensuring you do not cut the entire way. You want to create a fan:
Brush with butter, slip in 2 sage leaves into 2 fans of potato and season with salt.
Roast the potatoes, brushing occasionally with (more) butter until fork-tender, golden brown and tender. 30 minutes or so.
If you tell them you made the cheese, who knows how they’ll react. Because who the hell just makes cheese for dinner?!
Paneer Chilli Fry
Serves: 4 as a starter
Nat and I did the Nilgiri’s cooking class last Saturday and it was excellent.
The class, run by Indian restaurateur Ajoy Joshi, is pretty famous in Sydney and it wasn’t hard to see why. As a restaurateur, Ajoy has been very successful and we have eaten at all his restaurants including Tellicherry which serves upmarket, really clever Indian food backed by personable service.
In terms of the class, we learnt new techniques and gained a greater appreciation of the use and background of different spices and ingredients.
Case in point was this Paneer Chilli Fry, only the second time we have made cheese as part of a dish.
A combination of the cheese, the spices and the buttermilk, it is just wonderful. Really special in fact and definitely something you would look like a genius presenting as part of an Indian feast.
The cheese (Paneer: homemade Indian Cottage Cheese) component requires a little concentration at the beginning, though it isn’t tricky and I’ve written the instructions to keep it as foolproof as possible.
If you, like me, are on a never-ending quest to find better and better Indian food to cook, this is absolutely something you must try.
Just ensure that you don’t try and use anything but full-fat milk. Cheese needs an 8% fat content, with the addition of the cream in this dish making up the 4% fat content of the full-fat milk. Skim milk simply won’t leave you with anything but wasted milk.
Ingredients
Paneer
1 liter cream milk 100ml fresh cream ½ cup white vinegar Muslin cloth (for straining) Marinade 1 tbsp fresh ginger, crushed 1 tbsp fresh garlic, crushed 1 ½ tbsp fresh green chillis (including the seeds) 4 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed 1 tbsp chilli powder Salt to taste
To prep/serve 2 – 3 tbsp vegetable oil 300ml buttermilk Juice of one lemon Chat Masala to taste 1 bunch fresh coriander leaves, chopped
Method
Paneer
Place a saucepan over a medium-heat and add the milk and cream. Stir in a figure of eight, ensuring that you are scraping the bottom of the pan to ensure none of the milk/cream sticks.
When steam starts to come off of the milk, stop stirring. Continue to heat until it starts to boil. Take off the heat and ensure that it doesn’t overflow and spill; this likely means blowing on it to cool it.
Tip in some of the vinegar and the substance will curdle. Add enough vinegar until this is happening.
Scoop the curdled milk pieces into the muslin cloth using some sort of strainer or slotted spoon. Discard the whey from the saucepan.
Tie the cloth reasonable tightly and place the cloth/curdled milk in a colander to allow additional whey to drain out; place the saucepan on top of the cloth and weigh down so that you have an inch-thick compact disc. Allow to drain and compress for at least 20 minutes to allow all the whey to drain out.
Cut/shred into dices and set aside.
Marinade
For the marinade, mix the ginger, garlic, chilli, coriander seeds, chilli powder and salt.
To serve
Heat the oil in a pan until it smokes. Add the marinade to the pan, reduce the heat and cook until the marinade caramelises. Add the buttermilk and reduce until well heated and slightly thickened.
Add the diced paneer and toss until coated in the marinade.
Sprinkle with the freshly squeezed lemon juice (to taste) and fresh coriander leaves.
A favourite of the wonderful Stephanie Alexander, it is simple to prep and even simpler to serve; double cream, some raspberries and a picnic on the grass like we did.
This is a tick tick number and one to definitely try for a casual dinner when you want to really wow the team.
Ingredients
125gm good quality dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa solids) 1 tbsp brandy 1 tbsp espresso 100gm unsalted butter, softened ½ cup caster sugar ¾ cup ground almonds (we blitzed them in the food processor) 3 eggs, separated: lightly beat the yolks, beat the egg whites until firm though not dry Icing sugar for dusting Double cream and raspberries or strawberries to serve
Method
Preheat the oven the 160c. Butter an 18c, round cake tin and line with baking paper: this is a cake that can split and leak easily so the baking paper is best.
Combine chocolate, brandy and espresso in a heatproof bowl that fits snugly over a saucepan of simmering water, ensuring the base of the bowl does not touch the water. Heat without stirring the chocolate until it is melted. Stir and add the butter and sugar. Mix well.
Add ground almonds and stir very well. Remove from the heat. Stir in the beaten egg yolks. Lighten the mixture with a spoonful of the beaten egg whites and then softly fold in the rest.
Spoon the batter into the cake tin. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove and allow to completely cool in the tin, remembering that the cake is fragile and will plit.
Carefully turn onto a plate, dust with icing sugar and serve with the cream and berries.
The only drink I ever order from Boost Juice is a medium, Banana Buzz; I had one just yesterday and they’re just awesome.
Here is your way to try the amazing Boost Banana Buzz and save $6.40.
It is spot-on.
Ingredients
1 large banana 1 cup (skim) milk 2 large scoops Bulla Frozen Yoghurt (original flavour) or similar, frozen, plain Greek Yoghurt ½ tbsp honey 1 cup ice cubes
Warmed Red Cabbage Salad with Toasted Walnuts and Goats Cheese
Serves: 6
This is a really great salad.
Really, really great.
The melting goat cheese, the toasted walnuts, the apple, the balsamic vinegar. It’s warm, crunchy, rich and sweet.
This is a real treat.
Serve with lamb koftas, beef or chicken kebabs, BBQed pork tenderloin.
Ingredients
1 small head, red cabbage, cored and sliced into strips 1 small apple, cored and sliced 1 small red onion, thinly sliced 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced 2 – 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp olive oil 200gm goats cheese ½ cup walnuts, toasted Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
In a frypan, heat the olive oil over a medium heat and add the garlic and cook until fragrant though not browned. Add the onion and 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar and cook for a minute.
Add cabbage and stir well; cook for 5 minutes or so until slightly wilted and softened though still bright coloured.
Add apple, walnuts, season and stir well. Add the goats cheese and stir to gently incorporate. Taste for seasoning and add additional balsamic vinegar if it needs some acidity.
This is a recipe I pulled from the Weekend Australian Magazine by David Herbert and it is really quite good. I’ve been more hit than miss with his stuff in the past, though as far as a clean, healthy, spring salad goes, this is a winner.
If you haven’t cooked with bulgar, it is worth the effort to find it in your local organics shop.
It is less abrasive than quinoa, healthy, packed full of protein and fibre, and filling. Add the fresh herbs and vegetables and you have a salad that looks great, tastes great and is easy to prepare.
Try it with steak or lamb and you’ll be pleased you did.
Ingredients
150gm bulgar ¾ cup roughly chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley ½ cup roughly chopped fresh mint 200gm cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped 1 Lebanese cucumber, peeled and diced 1 clove garlic, crushed Seeds 1 pomegranate 3 spring onions, chopped Juice, 1 lemon 2 – 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
Place bulgar in a bowl and cover with 500ml boiling water. Soak for 30 minutes and then drain well, removing all excess water.
Combine cooled bulgar, parsley, mint, tomatoes, cucumber, garlic, pomegranate, spring onions and lemon juice in a large bowl. Season well with the salt and freshly ground pepper. Pour over olive oil and toss well.
Until I wrote up this recipe, I wasn’t entirely sure what flax was, except to have used it in the protein balls we periodically make for snacks.
Found in the healthy section of Coles or Woolies, I assumed – rightly it turns out – that it was one of the many healthy grains/seeds/whatever superfoods we had largely ignored until recently.
Seriously right I was.
The butter and sugar in these cookies probably don’t win them a dieting star, though they win a few other stars; namely, that they are great cookies and namely, that they have this incredible flax stuff throughout.
So Flax?
It is basically amazing and we have – apparently – been eating it for years.
Super nutritious, super high in fiber, low in carbs, packed full of amazing stuff and associated with everything from weight loss to hair gain.
The list of benefits simply doesn’t end!
Anyway, we just wanted cookies for our lunch and the boys’ lunch and it seems, if you can add flax, you’ve made yourself a super cookie.
Add the butter and sugar and who am I to disagree!?
P.S. Boys agree!
Ingredients
2 cup all-purpose flour ¼ cup flax seed meal 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp salt 225gm unsalted butter 1 cup caster sugar 1 cup brown sugar 3 large eggs 2 tsp vanilla extract 3 cups rolled oats 1 cup raised ¼ cup whole flax seeds
Method
Preheat the oven to 180c.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, flaxseed meal, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix the butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla, manually or with a hand mixer. Beat until the mixture is fluffy.
Combine the two mixtures, stirring until the flour is fully incorporated, then add the oats, raisins, and flax seeds. Mix well, but don’t over mix.
Prepare a baking sheet with baking paper. Scoop out heaping tablespoons of cookie dough, and gently form each into a ball, and place them 5cm apart on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the top of each cookie with whole flax seeds. Bake for 11-14 minutes, uncovered, until the cookies turn golden brown (but are still moist in the middle). Rotate the baking sheet halfway through to ensure evenly baked cookies.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 3 to 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack or towel to cool. If using only one baking sheet, repeat until you’ve used all of the dough.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (or get your air fryer ready)
Melt the butter on a low heat and add the honey. Stir well until mixed.
Take your sauce off the heat and throw in your cashews. Mix well until they’re completely covered in honey and then turn out onto a lined baking tray, spreading evenly.
Pop in the oven for five minutes and then toss. Repeat again. If they’re still looking pale, repeat once more. Or air fry for 6 minutes.
When they’re golden and toasted, pour into a bowl with the sugar and salt. Mix together, giving the nuts a bit of a shake.
Leave the nuts to cool, stirring occasionally to break them up.
This is a really tasty, really healthy, down the line dahl.
A Valli Little recipe, it has a nice hint of spice and is packing flavour. Perfect for a quick Saturday lunch or lunch at work.
As with any lentil number, you know it will be good.
So just do it.
Ingredients
2 tbsp sunflower oil
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tsp grated ginger
1 long green chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
400g yellow split peas, rinsed, soaked in water for 1 hour, drained
800g can chopped tomatoes
3 cups (750ml) chicken stock
1 tsp caster sugar
100g baby spinach leaves
Method
Heat oil in the pan over a medium heat. Add onion and cook for 2 – 3 minutes, stirring, until softened. Add ginger, chilli and garlic and cook for a further minute. Stir in the spices and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add peas, stock, tomatoes, sugar and 1 ½ (375ml) water. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat to low and cook for 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally until peas are tender and dahl is thick and rich.
Robby Dog Cooks 