Seafood Corn Chowder

In the interests of full disclosure:

• this is not my recipe
• nor have I made it before…

I have enjoyed it at my friend Victoria’s home however, where she has made it to begin the Good Friday lunch that her family host each year (they also own and run a beautiful Barossa Valley winery and restaurant, Lou Miranda Estate).

I shared a photo of it on my Instagram account and the recipe was requested, so here it is…

Seafood Corn Chowder Recipe

Cooking time 1-1.5 hours
Serves 10 average size bowls

Ingredients:

• 5 litres fish stock
• 100g butter
• 50ml olive oil
• 2 onions
• 3 cloves garlic
• 4 celery sticks
• 4 carrots
• 3 leeks
• 600g canned corn
• 6 large potatoes
• Bay leaf
• Thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 600ml cream (Optional – Victoria said she removed my server – sans cream – from the pot before adding cream, tasted it, and decided it tasted better without so everyone went dairy free!)
• Scallops
• Prawns
• Fish (The quantity of seafood is up to you. Victoria uses about 3 prawns and scallops, and 2 chunks of fish per person)
• Vegetable stock cube  (Optional)
• Parsley to serve

Method:

1. Heat the butter and oil in a large pot on a medium to high heat. The pot will need to be big enough to make up to 7 litres.
2. Dice onion, garlic, celery, carrot and leeks, place them into the heated butter and oil, cook until onions are translucent.
3. Chop potatoes into small chunks (the bigger the potato pieces means you need to cook the soup for longer). Tie the bay leaf and thyme with some cooking string, you need to be able to remove this from the pot before blending the soup.
4. Add the potatoes, corn, bay leaf and thyme to the pot and cover with the fish stock, once the stock has come to the boil reduce to a simmer. If you do not have enough fish stock you can top the pot up with water.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you find you need more flavour add the vegetable stock cube.
6. When the potatoes are cooked through use a stick blender to make the soup smooth. Add the cream – if you choose to – and continue to cook on a simmer
7. 10-15 minutes before you are ready to serve add the scallops, prawns and fish.
8. Once the fish looks like it is cooked through, serve the soup in a bowl with finally chopped parsley.

Buon appetito!

Roast vegetable frittata

Oh my. I can’t believe how long it has been since my last post.

But in my defence, in the last couple of months I started working for myself and got married. So there.

Thankfully after all this busy-ness, we recently had a public holiday, which is my favourite excuse to have a BBQ lunch and catch up with friends.

The friends in question have recently had a baby (and one is vegetarian), so we were after a quick and easy lunch. It was also about 40˙C  so weren’t keen for hot food… this frittata is just the ticket! It can be made the day before and is delicious cold, making it great for picnics and similar occasions.

It’s chocked full of vegetables and protein, making it wonderfully filling and satisfying, without being too stodgy.

The vegetable ingredients below are a suggestion only, and you can replace, use anything you have to hand.

You can also leave out the cheese and make it dairy free as well.

Gluten-free Roast Vegetable Frittata

Ingredients:

The below vegetable and herb ingredients are a guide only. You can easily substitute your preferred vegetables, or use those at hand.

• 1 x sweet potato
• 1-2 x capsicums, roasted (or you can use bought roast capsicums from the deli section or jarred)
• Handful baby spinach or rocket
• Few sprigs of fresh basil or parsley
• 6-8 eggs
• 150grams (ish) fetta (optional, leave it out to make this dish dairy free. FYI, I use goat’s fetta)
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180˙C (for pre-roasting the vegetables, then cooking the frittata).
2. Grease and line a square or round baking tin for the frittata. I recommend a round one with releasable sides.
3. Peel and slice the sweet potato into approximately 5mm thick slices. Place in a baking tray drizzled with olive oil and bake for 10-15 minutes, until soft. Remove from oven and cool.
4. Slice and de-seed capsicums (if using fresh). You can either roast them with the sweet potato, or place under a grill, skin side towards the heat/flame. Cook for a few minutes, and keep an eye on them as the skin starts to pucker and blacken. Don’t worry about the skin burning, this is ideal. Try to get as much of the skin blackened as possible.
5. 

   Roasted capsicums in plastic bag. Looks weird, but it works.

   Remove the capsicum from either the baking dish or grill, place in a plastic bag and seal. Stay with me here… this is a trick my Dad taught me on how to easily make your own roasted capsicum.

6. Leave the capsicum in the plastic bag for about 5-10 minutes so that it steams up. This is a great time to be preparing other vegetables etc. Remove capsicum from bag, and peel away the skin. If using the grill method, this burning and then steaming makes it really easy to remove, while also giving it a lovely roasted flavour. Don’t worry if you can’t remove all the skin, just remove as much as possible.
7. Rinse any fresh leaves that you’ll be using, and slice the fetta into 5mm thick slices (if using).
8. Begin your frittata assembly by lining the baking tin with a layer of sweet potato, then capsicum, then spinach/rocket/herbs, then some crumbled fetta, and repeat until your baking tin is nearly filled to the top.
9. Now crack 6 eggs into a bowl or jug, season with salt and pepper (though I don’t recommend using salt if also including fetta, as it can become too salty), and mix to combine. I also recommend starting off with 6 eggs so that your tin doesn’t overflow…
10. Pour seasoned egg mixture into tin over vegetables. Pour through the gaps, and turn the tin to make sure the egg fills up all the spaces. If you can’t see the egg mixture through the top layer, crack, beat and add 1-2 more eggs until you can see the egg.
11. Place frittata in oven and cook for 30-45 minutes until firm to the touch, and you are sure all the egg is cooked. This time will vary depending on your oven. It actually took 1 hour in mine. It’s much better to be safe and overcook (providing you don’t burn it) than undercook though.
12. Once cooked, remove from oven, and allow to cool in baking tin for 5-10 minutes, just to make sure it stays firm. Then remove from tin, and serve warm or cool completely to serve cold.

Enjoy! Let me know any other vegetables you would, or do add to yours in the comments!

8 (well, 7) hour pulled pork with cherry and peach salsa

Skip the jibber jabber, take me straight to the recipe!

Some people hate photos of food shared on social media channels.

I love them.

I love getting inspiration for new places to go, dishes to order and recipes to make.

So when my Interwebz friend @flooziemagoo posted:

I thought “hellz yeah! I want me some of that edible air!” and promptly copied her and made the same dish. Well, it wasn’t really prompt as it was the next day, and I also started later than I planned to, hence the 7 hours rather than the recommended 8…

The recipe is from this awesome site Iowa Girl Eats. It’s namesake – Kristin – loves cooking and eating and running as well (the latter to counteract the former) so I think we’ld get along famously.

While the pork does take time to make, it has relatively few, and fairly simple ingredients, and one surprising one. The main liquid used by Kristin in the original recipe is Dr Pepper. Yes, the soft drink (or soda). I substituted sarsparilla. It’s quite similar, and it’s what @flooziemagoo used, so clearly I’m going to copy her.

The recipe also calls for chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. I couldn’t find these at my local Foodland, so used chillies and made some adobo sauce. I’ve included the recipe below. You can probably find them at a gourmet grocer or specialty shop though.

The other neat trick I learnt is with the meat itself (shout out to my local butcher!). The pork cut is pork shoulder. Most pork roats are actually pork shoulder, but they have the thick layer of fat that is used for crackling. This recipe doesn’t require the fat, so you can cut this off and if not using immediately, roll it up, seal in cling wrap and freeze it. You can then either cook crackling on its own another time, or wrap it around another roast – even a lamb or beef roast – to give it extra moisture. Pretty cool, huh?

8 Hour Pulled Pork with Cherry and Peach Salsa

Ingredients:

For the pork

• 1 large brown onion
• 2kg pork shoulder, excess fat removed
• salt
• pepper
• 4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• 2 tablespoons adobo sauce (see recipe below)
• 1/2 cup gluten free BBQ sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 600ml sarsparilla

For the salsa

• 1 cup chopped cherries (stones removed)
• 1 cup chopped peaches (yellow or white, stones removed)
• 1/4 cup chopped coriander
• 1 minced jalapeño
• 1 lime, juiced
• dash of salt

For serving

• Gluten free tortillas or brown rice (cooked to directions) or as one of many dishes in your Mexican feast!

Method:

1. Slice the onion into quarters, separate the layers and place over the bottom of your slow cooker (oh, did I mention it’s a slow cooker recipe? If you don’t have one, you can also use a large, heavy pot and cook it on low on the stove top, or in the oven).
2. Trim all excess fat from the pork shoulder, and cut it into 5 or 6 large pieces.
3. Season each piece of pork generously with salt and pepper.
4. Add the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, BBQ sauce, brown sugar and sarsaparilla.
5. Cook on low for 8 hours (or if you’re running late like me, cook on high for a few hours, then drop it down to low for the last few hours.
6. And try not to salivate too much.
7. You can make the salsa ahead of time, and let it marinade in its own sweet spicy goodness… Combine the chopped cherries, peaches, coriander, minced jalapeños, lime juice and salt, mixing everything together. I’ll admit I was a little wary of this combination when first making, and even right before trying, but especially with the pork, it just works!
8. When the pork is cooked through, oh so tender and falling apart… shred it up, place in a bowl and strain the juices off through a sieve. Then return enough of the juices to cover the meat and keep it moist.
9. Serve the pulled pork and salsa with gluten free tortillas or brown rice, and enjoy!

Adobo Sauce

If you can’t find adobo sauce, here’s how to make it…

Ingredients:

• 12 chipotle chillies (or just long red ones if you’re like me and can’t find the others), wiped clean, stemmed, slit open, seeded, and deveined
• 3/4 cup water for blending, or more if necessary
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 3/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 rounded teaspoon ground cumin

Method:

1. Heat a skillet over medium-low heat and toast the chillies, turning them frequently over and pressing them down with the tongs until they’re fragrant and their insides have changed colour slightly. Approximately 1 minute each.
2. Soak the chillies in enough water to cover them until they are soft (approximately half and hour). Drain and discard the soaking water.
3. Put the chilies in a blending container with 3/4 cup fresh water and the remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth (approximately 3 minutes) adding a little more water if necessary to puree.
4. To get a smoother texture, strain the adobo sauce through a medium mesh sieve.

The adobo sauce keeps in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Images courtesy of @flooziemagoo. I was too busy trying to eat the air to take any…

Flourless orange cake

Just kidding! Here’s a photo of it below. That is a genuine “after” photo above though.

I first made this cake a couple of months ago when we had my brother and sister in law over for Sunday lunch.

It’s such a gorgeous dessert. It’s rich and decadent, but not overbearing like some flourless chocolate cakes can be (can’t believe  I just wrote that!) It must be the zesty orange base that makes it feel fresh rather than heavy.

It’s super moist as well, and would probably last a long time, however it doesn’t seem to last long enough in our house to determine exactly how long that may be…

I actually just had a piece then, nom!

Ingredients:

• 2 large oranges
• 5 large eggs
• 1/2 cup raw sugar
• 250g almond meal
• 1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
• 2 teaspoons orange liqueur (Optional, I didn’t put this in to my cakes and they were still delicious. Actually, that doesn’t sound like much to me either. Personally I’ld put 1-2 tablespoons in)

Optional “finishers”:

• Icing sugar (to dust over the top once cook)
• Cream, non-dairy cream, or sheep’s milk yoghurt (that last one’s my favourite)
• Strawberries (and for an added treat, cut and soak them for a few hours before in port with a teaspoon of sugar before serving, mmmm…)
• Or orange syrup made from another orange and 3/4 cup caster sugar (recipe below)

Method:

1. Place the oranges in a saucepan covered with water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 hours, filling the saucepan up with extra water as required.
2. Remove from water, and allow the oranges to cool.
3. Preheat the oven to 200˙C.
4. Grease and line a 20cm round baking tin with baking paper.
5. Cut the oranges into quarters and blend until smooth either in a food processor or with a handheld blender (pips, peel and all).
6. Beat the eggs and sugar together.
7. Mix in the baking powder, stir in the orange puree mixture, and gently fold in the almond meal.
8. If using orange liqueur, stir this in, then pour the mixture into the baking tin.
9. Bake for 55 minutes, or until a knife or skewer comes out clean. This will depend on your oven. It took about 1 hour and 5 minutes in ours.
10. Allow the cake to cool in the tin before removing.
11. Dust with icing sugar (once completely cool) before serving, or cover with orange syrup (see below). Also serve with cream or yoghurt, and or strawberries if desired.
12. Store in fridge.

Above: The oranges cooking. On the left, before, and on the right, after. You probably can’t see much of a difference, but they do soften and infuse the water. I need to find something to do with that water! It seems like such a waste…

Orange syrup:

I actually haven’t tried this orange syrup, so if you do, please let me know in the comments.

To make the orange syrup:

1. While the cake is cooking, use a grater to zest the orange, and also juice the orange (it’s easier if you zest the orange before juicing it).
2. Place the rind in a saucepan of boiling water and cook for 5 minutes or until soft.
3. Drain, and return the cooked zest to the pan with the juice from the orange and the 3/4 cup of caster sugar.
4. Place over low heat and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the sugar dissolves and the syrup thickens.
5. Once the cake has been removed from the pan, use a skewer to prick the top of the cake (to let the syrup in) and pour the syrup over the cake.
6. Cut and serve!

Pumpkin and bacon risotto

I’ve been *following* Design Files for a while now, but a few months ago a colleague encouraged me to subscribe to it’s daily updates. This has resulted in me salivating every morning, either over the beautiful design examples or delicious looking food suggestions…

Recently I gave it’s Pumpkin and bacon risotto recipe a go.

Risotto and rice-based dishes have always been a great gluten-free alternative for me, that everyone else seems to love as well. They can also easily and deliciously be dairy free and vegetarian (although this one is not vego…)

Strangely the recipe I followed did not mention how much rice was required, or that rice was even an ingredient! So I had to guess on that part, but it worked out okay.

I love making risotto. Even though I have to stay there stirring, stirring, stirring… as long as I’ve got a glass of wine and Twitter access, I’m happy 🙂

As you can tell by my photos, it’s also another late night meal… (I will get a decent camera one day!)

I served it with rocket, pear and roasted walnut salad with reduced balsamic vinegar dressing. Yum.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups arborio rice
• 900g pumpkin
 (I used Queensland blue, but I think jap or butternut would do just as well)
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 
½ teaspoon fresh nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons savoury herbs (I used fresh rosemary)
• 
4 rashers of bacon (gluten free)
• Salt and pepper
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 onions finely chopped
• 
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 100g Nuttelex (well that’s how much I used)

• 
1 cup of white wine
 (and the rest is available to drink, yay!)
• 3 ½ cups of warm chicken stock (gluten and dairy free)
• 1 cup of grated Parmesan cheese (if you can tolerate it, I use sheep milk pecorino as a non-cow milk substitute, or omit for a totally dairy free dish)

Method:

1. Peel the pumpkin skin off and chop into cubes. I find it much easier to cut pumpkin at room temperature, or when it’s a tad warm. Also a good potato peeler can be used to peel some pumpkin skins.
2. Cut the bacon rashers into small squares and add everything to an oiled tray.
3. Sprinkle the paprika, nutmeg, coriander and savoury over the pumpkin and bacon squares.
4. Season well with salt and pepper and drizzle with a little extra olive oil.
5. Place into a moderate oven for 30 minutes or until well cooked.
6. After 15 minutes, turn the pumpkin pieces over to ensure they are roasted evenly.
7. Meanwhile in a large pot, add a slug of olive oil and the chopped onion.
8. Let it brown before adding the butter, garlic and rice.
9. Cook the rice for a minute or so until it’s well coated in the melted butter.
10. Add a cup of warm stock to the rice and stir continuously.
11. Once all the rice has absorbed the stock, stir in the wine.
12. Add the rest of the stock a cup at a time until it is all added, ensuring you’re stirring continuously to prevent the bottom from sticking.
13. Taste the rice and add some water if it needs further cooking.
14. Once the rice is cooked, remove from heat and add half the parmesan cheese (if you choose).
15. Cover the rice and let it stand for 5 minutes.
16. The pumpkin and bacon should be cooked by this stage; remove the tray from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before serving.
17. Serve the rice into a bowl, top it with the roasted pumpkin and bacon and sprinkle with parmesan cheese (if desired).

And enjoy!

As mentioned, I also served this with rocket, pear and roasted walnut salad with reduced balsamic vinegar dressing.

Below: the roasted pumpkin and bacon, and the risotto mixture… mmm.

Vegetarian moussaka

Need to get better with my photos… can promise it tastes better than it looks tho.

I first came across this recipe when my fiance and I were seeing how we would go being vegetarian for a couple of weeks (we were fine).

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com.au. The description says: “This recipe always gets rave reviews from vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike.” And it’s so true. I’ve just made it again today at his request, though we’re not pretending to be vegetarian at the moment.

Moussaka also holds a special meaning for us, as my fiance was actually going out to get take away moussaka the night we met. Okay, there was a little more too it than just that, but it was part of it. Just imagine if I were part Greek instead of part Italian! That would be funny – although some may say politically incorrect – but it’s my food blog, story and life, so I’m saying it.

This is another recipe I’ve obviously adapted. Fortunately I can tolerate sheep and goat’s milk cheese, so I can still enjoy it’s cheesy goodness. If you want to see the original recipe, it is here.

If you can’t tolerate sheep or goat’s milk… sorry!

This recipe also takes some time to make, so prepare yourself. I made pumpkin and chickpea flour muffins at the same time.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant, thinly sliced
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large zucchini, thinly sliced
• 2 potatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped (I always double the garlic, at least)
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 tin (440g) whole peeled tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tin (440g) lentils, drained, juice reserved (the original recipe suggets half a tin, but I prefer more lentils)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• 125g crumbled feta cheese (sheep or goat’s)

And for the white sauce:

• 30g dairy free spread, such as Nuttelex
• 2 tablespoons gluten free cornflour
• 1 1/4 cups (315ml) dairy free milk (I prefer rice milk for cooking, it provides the required consistency and effect without an overpowering flavour)
• black pepper to taste
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg
• 1 egg, beaten
• 30g (¼ cup) grated hard sheet or goat’s cheese, such as pecorino

Method:

1. Sprinkle eggplant slices with salt and set aside for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.
   If you’ve ever wondered why it’s suggested to salt eggplant, it removes the eggplant juice, making it dryer and so it fries better. Or as the Italians say, it “draws out the bitter waters…” See the photos below.
2. Preheat oven to 190˙C.
3. Heat oil in a large frypan over medium-high heat. I like to use my big electric fry pan.
4. Lightly brown the eggplant and zucchini slices on both sides, then drain.
5. Add more oil if necessary, and brown the potato slices, drain.
6. Saute the onion and garlic until lightly browned.
7. Pour in vinegar and reduce the mixture.
8. Stir in the tomatoes, lentils, ½ the juice from lentils, oregano and parsley.
9. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 15 minutes. I do this at the same time as I’m waiting for the eggplant and browning the vegetables. It’s a bit of a juggling act…
10. In a large casserole dish, layer the eggplant, zucchini, potatoes, and feta.
11. Pour the tomato and lentil mixture over the vegetable layer.
12. Repeat the layering process, finishing with a layer of eggplant and zucchini.
13. Cover and bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes.
14. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the Nuttelex, cornflour and rice milk.
15. Bring to a slow boil, whisking constantly until thick and smooth.
16. Season with the pepper and add the nutmeg.
17. Remove the saucepan from heat, cool for 5 minutes, and stir in the beaten egg.
18. Pour sauce over vegetables and sprinkle with the pecorino.
19. Bake, uncovered, for another 25 to 30 minutes.
20. Serve with green salad, like rocket. Love rocket.

Salting the eggplants, see how much moisture it extracts!?

Grilled potato and zucchini…

The lovely tomato and lentil sauce, this smells divine…

The final product! (was clearly late once it had finished and as such the lighting for photos wasn’t great…)

Sweet potato gnocchi

The raw gnocchi…

Pan frying the little parcels of goodness…

The final product with our lamb ragu… it didn’t last long…

I love gnocchi.

It’s one of the few meals I made with my Nonna, and wish I had learnt more of her specialties when I had the chance.

Since discovering my intolerance to gluten, it’s not something I’ve been able to partake upon frequently (it is also very time consuming, so even before then I didn’t make it often…)

I made a regular gluten free potato gnocchi a few months ago, and it was divine… I think it was actually better for the fine gluten free flour. Lighter. Softer. Like little pillows of deliciousness. Mmmm…

I came across this recipe for sweet potato gnocchi in the My New Roots Holiday Reader Recipe Challenge PDF download on the My New Roots food blog (an awesome healthy food blog I was put onto by a colleague). This particular recipe was submitted by Clare of the Blueberry Skies food blog.

What appealed to me (apart from the use of sweet potato, which I love!) was that they are cooked by lightly frying them, rather than boiling.

I’ve adapted the recipe slightly, just replacing the spelt flour with gluten free flour. While spelt flour is non-wheat, it is not gluten free.

Makes about 4 serves (depending on how big an appetite you have…)

Ingredients:

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 1-1.5 cups gluten free plain flour (rough guide, I ended up using about 2-2.5 cups, so have extra on hand, just in case)
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon cracked pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg, lightly beaten (optional, but I recommend it to assist with binding, especially if using gluten free flour)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200˙C or 390˙F .
2. Cut the sweet potatoes in half, lengthwise and place face down on an oven tray. Bake until soft all the way through (this was about 1-1.5 hours for me, I forget exactly how long).
3. When the sweet potatoes are cool enough to touch, peel the skin, and any uncooked or brown edges away, and mash them thoroughly in a mixing bowl. The sweet potato mixture needs to be perfectly smooth, so you may need to push it thru a sieve.
4. Add the nutmeg, pepper and salt, and mix with a fork.
5. Gradually add the flour – and egg if you wish – mixing with a fork until a dough forms.
6. Continue to add the flour until the mixture can be worked with your hands.
7. Knead the dough several times on a well floured surface.
8. Divide the ball of dough into quarters and roll into tubes with your hands.
9. Cut 2cm pieces with a sharp knife (flouring the knife can help as well).
10. Heat a non stick pan on medium heat with a little olive oil.
11. Fill the pan with the gnocchi pieces and cook until golden brown on one side.
12. Turn the gnocchi over and reduce the heat to low to cook them through without burning.
13. After 5 or 6 minutes, check a piece by breaking it open and tasting it (you may need to “check” a few…) If the insides are still doughy, continue cooking. You may wish to cover the pan with a lid. Once the inside appears “baked” they are ready!
14. Once cooked, serve immediately with your favourite sauce. We enjoyed them with lamb ragu.