Tag: avocado

Anjum Anand’s Grilled Chopped Chicken Salad

.Reading time 3 minutes.

Serves: 2

I’ve slightly adapted this salad to fill it out for two, though the essence is the same.

And that is just a wonderful, healthy, Indian salad perfect for New Year’s Day: where in 2025, the Champagne had to continue.

Right?

The sprinkled Chaat Masala with the roast and ground cumin seeds is your spice. I deseeded the chilli though that is your call.

I also cooked the chicken breasts over charcoal.

Add that lemon, plenty of olive oil and more Champagne and this was a blast of a salad.

Fun. Tasty. Spicy. Perfect to start the new year.

Perfect for a Sydney summer.

More Champagne? Yes thank you.

Another Anjum Anand success.

Ingredients

1 large chicken breast
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus extra to serve
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large garlic clove, finely grated
1 tsp roasted and ground cumin seeds
Good fistful of coriander (stems and leaves), finely chopped
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 medium tomato, cut into 1cm cubes
1 ripe avocado, cut into 1cm cubes
1/2 small red onion, finely diced
Two good handfuls of chopped lettuce*
1 1/2 tsp chaat masala
1/2 green chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
2 tbsp salted peanuts, lightly chopped

Method

  1. Marinate the chicken in 1 tbsp olive oil, seasoning and garlic for at least 30 minutes.
  2. Heat a griddle pan, add the chicken breast and cook for 5 – 6 minutes each side until done.
  3. Meanwhile, mix together the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil, more seasoning, roast cumin and a little of the lemon juice and coriander.
  4. Place the tomato, avocado, onion and lettuce in a bowl. Add the chaat masala, chilli and most of the dressing and toss. Taste, season and add more lemon juice as necessary.
  5. Thinly slice the cooked chicken and place on top of the salad, drizzle with the remaining dressing, coriander and peanuts. Drizzle with more olive oil and serve… with Champagne.

* Nat has a ban on iceberg lettuce in our house on account of its nutritional deficiency. Though we served these Neil Perry Prawn Cocktails as part of a Christmas Eve dinner and we had iceberg lettuce left over.

We both agreed, this was the way to go. It’s New Year’s Day and the feeling was right. Go the iceberg.

Marina Delio’s Avocado Bruschetta

.Reading time 1 minute.

Serves: 2 – 4

Look, there is nothing special about the technique here.

A classic bruschetta is something you can do with your eyes closed. Arguably, you don’t even need this recipe to whip up an avocado bruschetta.

The reason for typing it?

We had a pile of avocados and as a starter for a casual at-home Italian lunch, I thought why not.

And why not indeed!

I’m not sure I’ll ever do a bruschetta that isn’t avocado again!

It is awesome.

Ingredients

1 baguette, sliced 1 1/2cm thick
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced in half
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Roma tomato, diced
1 large avocado, peeled, seeded and diced
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 c sliced basil

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180c. Place the bread slices on a baking tray and brush with a little olive oil. Toast until golden brown, and then rub the sliced garlic cloves over the warm toast.
  2. In a small-medium bowl, gently combine 1 tbsp olive oil, the minced garlic, tomato, avocado, white balsamic, salt and basil. Season with more salt and/or vinegar if desired.
  3. Serve the avocado topping wth the toasted bread.

Gourmet Traveller’s Kingfish Ceviche Tostada

.Reading time 2 minutes.

Serves: 6

Leading up to Avalon’s (7 months as of today) birth, Nat and I talked of our first proper meal together. Being October, outside, put up the umbrella, Champagne and a slow afternoon of good food and baby talk.

Good times right.

I did a side of ocean trout over charcoal and a really aromatic Asian/South American salad, though we kicked it off with this tostada, a recipe I’d had in our worryingly big backlog of recipes to try.

Sure it’s simple and sure, Sydney has overdone kingfish ceviche to death the past few years, though what a great snack.

Just a lovely way to kick off a meal with a three-day-old and a glass of something French. And doesn’t it look the part!

(And 7-months later, Avalon has consistently remained the most happy, beautiful little girl and best-friend any father could ever hope for. And no, she is not named after the regional Victorian airport, and is instead a nod to the great Bryan Ferry and his greatest song of all time.)

Ingredients

400gm sashimi-grade kingfish, cut across the grain into 5mm slices
1/2 white onion, finely chopped
1/2 jalapeño, thinly sliced
Juice of 1/2 orange
1 tbsp olive oil (note: not extra virgin olive oil)
Juice of 2 limes
Vegetable oil for shallow-frying
6 – 8 small tortillas
1 large avocado, coarsely chopped
40gm sour cream
2 radishes, cut into julienne
1 c (loosely packed) coriander

Method

  1. Combine kingfish, onion, jalapeño, orange juice, olive oil and half the lime juice in a bowl, season to taste and refrigerate for 15 minutes to marinate.
  2. Meanwhile, heat vegetable oil (about 2cm deep) in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Fry tortillas one at a time, turning once, until golden and crisp (1 – 2 minutes each side). Transfer to a tray lined with paper towels. Season to taste with sea salt.
  3. Process avocado, sour cream and remaining lime juice in a blender or food processor until smooth and season to taste. Spread tostadas with avocado cream, top with ceviche, radish and coriander, season to taste and serve.

Adam Liaw’s Cauliflower Nachos

.Reading time 2 minutes.

Serves: 4

Adam Liam is on a tear and these nachos are no different.

GENIUS.

Lower calorie especially if you use less cheese, guacamole and turkey mince as your protein.

Either way, they are no compromise.

Even better than cauliflower rice – which is in itself not much of a compromise when you take into account you belt size – these nachos have it all.

Do them once, you’ll do them again.

Week time treat.

(Tip: pickle your own jalapeños which we did. Do a bunch of them and refrigerate in a jar. We have them in the fridge and have them with chilli and all sorts of things. A-mazing – look it up, a million recipes!)

I have adjusted this nacho recipe slightly.

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil
500gm (turkey) mince
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp ketchup
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp dry oregano
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 very large head cauliflower (or 2 small)
1 – 2 cups (low fat) grated cheese

Fresh tomato salsa

1/2 red onion, finely diced
2 Roma tomatoes, finely diced
1/4 tsp sugar
Good pinch of salt
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp finely shredded coriander
1 tbsp olive oil

To serve

Lime wedges
2 tbsp pickled, sliced jalapeños to serve
2 tbsp sour cream
Guacamole

Method

  1. Heat your oven to 220c. Break the cauliflower into (large-ish) florets and drizzle with 3 tbsp of olive oil. Season with salt and arrange on a larger baking sheet. Roast for 25 mins until well browned (evening blackening) and tender. Transfer to an oiled baking dish.
  2. At the same time, for the mince, heat a large saucepan over a high-heat and add 1 tbsp of the olive oil. Add and mince and fry until browned. Add the salt, ketchup, cumin, paprika, oregano, cinnamon, and 1 cup of hot water and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the water is evaporated but the mince is still moist.
  3. For the salsa, combine all the ingredients and set aside.
  4. Turn your oven to grill and top the cauliflower in the baking dish with the mince and then the cheese. Grill for 5 minutes until the cheese is browned.
  5. Serve with the salsa, Jalapeños, guacamole, sour cream and lime wedges.

Nigella’s smashed avocado

.Reading time 1 minute.

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Oh yeah! 

Serves: 2

I type this recipe up on Valentine’s Day morning and so you can guess what I have just eaten and been made for breakfast!

This is better than any Hallmark card. In fact, it is better than any smashed avocado and tomato number that you’ll likely get at your local breakfast haunt, what with the addition of the chilli, ginger, dill, a squeeze of lemon and the radish sprinkled on top.

I added a few slices of tomato to my plate as well.

This is my new healthy breakfast favourite. Except for Nat’s incredible Mexican Eggs, reserved for my once-a-year birthday.

Happy Valentine’s Day turtle. You are the one.

(Thanks also Nigella!)

Ingredients

1 avocado
Juice of half a small lemon
Half a bunch of dill, chopped
Good pinch chilli flakes
2 good pinched of grated ginger
Rock salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
2 thinly sliced radishes
2 – 4 slices of toasted soy and linseed bread
1 tomato, sliced 

Method

  1. Mash the avocado together with the lemon juice, dill, chilli flakes, ginger and salt and pepper.
  2. Spread the avocado mixture liberally on the toast.
  3. Throw a few radish slices on top and the tomato if using.
  4. Enjoy!