Vegetarian Baked Potato

1 washed potato, jacket on

1 avocado

1 clove of garlic, in skin

3 tablespoons Greek yoghurt

A handful of greens to wilt eg baby spinach, chickweed etc.

A twist of lime juice

A small nob of butter (optional)

Freshly ground salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 200C

Skewer potato 

Put potato and clove of garlic in oven proof vessel and bake. 

Remove garlic after 15 minutes. Squeeze out from skin.

Bake potato for an hour or until cooked.

While potato is baking combine lime juice, roasted garlic flesh, and yoghurt in small bowl.

Wilt greens in microwave, or in a pan with a lid or by washing over with boiled water.

Put potato on plate, and cut in half then - depending in size and shape -quarters or sixths.

Place small dabs of butter in cut potato.

Distribute greens over potato, then slices of avocado.

Dollop yoghurt mixture on top.

Season to taste.

Edible Weeds, Chickweed.

I got into edible weeds, and foraging in my garden via a book from CERES called Edible Weeds of Melbourne. You can find out more about it here.


Chickweed growing in my garden. A seasonal weed, it is abundant during Winter coming into flower in late Winter, before dying off in Spring.


Clockwise from top left: typical growth - note the pointed leaf tips and alternating leaf pairs along the stem, in bud, section of plant with some roots, in flower like a tiny daisy.

Forage harvesting can be done in one of two ways. If you have the time and have an abundance of chickweed, you could weed  it out of the places you don't want it and snip off the best tendrils from the root hub. Or, if you can't be bothered with that, just snip off what you need from the plant. The snipping method is also cleaner because you aren't disturbing any soil.


Roughly chopped chickweed. While edible in lengths it's more palatable roughly chopped, and easier to stir through food.

After washing and draining, tip harvest into a pile on chopping board.
Make a some cuts across the pile in two directions to roughly chop it. You're are aiming to reduce the tendril lengths rather than end up with something finely chopped. It isn't necessary to be precise. That said, you might prefer a fine chop for your dish.

Use as you would spinach or any other greenery in its cooked form. I have it sautéed with garlic chives or garlic, wilted as an accompaniment to poached eggs, mixed into scrambled egg mixture, in curry, stir fried, wilted with pasta and pesto and a baked potato. The entire plant stems, flowers, and buds is fine to eat, but raw, only the fingernail-sized leaves are recommended and that is waaay too much mucking about for me!

Almost a health food - if you squint - banana and chocolate mug cake

I've taken this recipe as a foundation and built my own.

How it is different and now mine:
I don't use oil, vanilla or chocolate chips.
Instead of sugar, I use a teaspooned dollop of golden syrup and a banana (broken up and pushed into the batter last). I use raw cacao.
I integrate the peanut butter - mine is made fresh into my own jar at The Source Bulk Foods, from just peanuts so I add a dash of salt. Salt enhances sweetness as does the cinnamon for the banana. I microwave it for 2 minutes.

Banana and Chocolate Mug Cake

Serves One.
You will need 1 large coffee/soup mug

Ingredients
4 tbsp plain flour
1 dolloped (scoop and coat spoon) teaspoon golden syrup
2 tbsp. raw cacao
1 free range egg
1 ripe to over ripe banana
3-5+ tbsp water or milk for richness (quantity depends how pudding like you want it)
1 teaspoon peanut butter (optional) or dessicated coconut
dash of cinnamon
pinch of salt

Method
Combine flour and cocoa in mug.
Add egg and combine well.
Mix in rest of ingredients except banana. Ensure no lumps/pockets of dry flour/cocoa.
Break or cut up banana and distribute in batter.
Microwave for two minutes.
Let it sit for a minute then enjoy!

Notes
You can leave out the peanut butter and substitute dessicated coconut if you're allergic and substitute other flour if you have dietary requirements.
Cocoa will work if you don't have cacao.
I reckon molasses would work instead of golden syrup but I haven't tried that yet. Let me know if you do :)
Add more water if you're vegan. It won't be quite as light but it will still be very tasty!

Pasta with Basil Cashew Pesto and Wilted Spinach

This is my favourite, no fuss, minimum mess, vegetarian lunch when I have homegrown basil. If I don't have spinach or suitable greens likes chickweed, I increase the parsley, add oregano and extra garlic chives to get some green goodness in there. Garlic chives are very easy to grow in a pot or the ground, as is Italian parsley.

Serves One
Ingredients
a cup/handful of spinach leaves
a small handful of fresh basil leaves
a smaller quantity of parsley (optional, good for balancing garlic heat)
one to two cloves of garlic depending on size OR 5-6 of garlic chive leaves if you like a milder garlic taste
freshly ground salt and pepper
olive oil
a small handful of roasted, salted cashews*
raw pasta for one

Method
While pasta is cooking:
1. Rip herbs into smaller pieces and add to mortar. Grind.
2. Add peeled garlic and grind.
3. Add nuts and grind.


4. You should end up with a bright green, thick paste like this. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Add a handful of grated parmesan and a good slurp of olive oil. Stir with flexible spatula into a thick paste.
6. Put ripped or chopped up fresh spinach leaves into a colander. Drain your freshly cooked pasta through colander to cook spinach.

7.Tip contents of colander into large bowl, and stir through pesto. Serve immediately.


* or pinenuts or any roasted nut you like. Unroasted peanuts and macademias should work well

Pink Bounty Slushy with Bamix

Homemade #slushy with my #Bamix 

I call this one the Pink Bounty. It's a cup full of frozen #watermelon, a tablespoon of desiccated #coconut - have previously used fresh coconut - and a pinch of #rawcacaonibs with a cup of water

#plasticfree #thesourcebrunswick #ilovemybamix

No fuss pesto

My letter to the manufacturer:

'I tried the new basil stir through pesto tonight. It was awful from the first mouthful. I had to add other things to it to make my dinner palatable. I wish I had just made my own pesto like I usually do. This pesto of yours is sweet and pesto should not be sweet at all.

There should not be any sugar in a pesto. Traditional recipes don't have it. As a refridgerated product you certainly don't need it. Even the non-refridgerated jars of pestos on the market aren't remotely sweet. Your product has over two teaspoons of sugar in each tub. That's more than most people put in a coffee. That's also more than there is salt and garlic in your product. Utterly wrong!

Unlike your other products, I would not buy or recommend this product to anyone.'

[edit 27/4/2015] To compensate for my unsatisfactory gastronomical experience, the manufacturer has offered to send me a coupon for the supermarket of my chosing.


No Fuss Pasta Pesto

I've made pesto for pasta enough times to be able to just throw it together without measurements, knowing it will be delicious. It's usually ready before my pasta is!

Cobble together these ingredients to a taste and texture you like, grinding in your mortar and pestle in the following order :

• Fresh basil leaves - also works with fresh oregano, roughly chopped, about a handful to serve two
• Freshly ground salt and pepper
• Garlic cloves - roughly chopped
• Pinenuts or other nuts - I usually have salted, roasted cashews on hand so I reduce the ground salt added. Peanuts also work well.

Now, get a little rubber or silicone spatula - never a metal implement, it will scratch the mortar- and mix in:

• Parmesan cheese - traditionally, but whatever hard cheese you have to hand will do in a pinch
• Olive oil - enough to turn the mixture into a paste

All you need is a mortar and pestle and you too can make your own. Yes you can do it in a processor but I suspect it will be a little different because you're cutting rather than crushing the ingredients. I recommend a granite mortar and pestle with a 12cm diameter on the mortar's inner bowl. It seems to be the optimum size: for speedy results on a good quantity; by not being too cumbersome to pick up off the bench and cradle if that's how you wish to grind; being easy to gently put in the sink and manipulate to wash. Always hand wash. Dark granite is better than marble because it won't stain.

Fuzzy Spiced Apple Punch

Fruit punch 'recipe'. Like most party punch, this was cobbled together to taste and it did please my guests muchly.
In a punch bowl or similar combine the following:
Ginger wine infused with cinnamon*
Apple juice
Diet dry ginger ale
Soda water to reduce sweetness if needed
Muddled apple mint leaves

*In a clean bottle or jar, place 2 cups of ginger wine with a whole stick of cinnamon. Store in a dark place to infuse for about a month.

Oven Baked Falafel Recipe

I have adapted more than one online falafel recipe to arrive at one of my own. It was so popular at my last party that I promised to share the recipe with my guests. It went as follows:

Oven Baked Falafels

Ingredients
2 cups dried chickpeas
1 small brown onion, roughly chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley,
3-5 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tbsp flour
1 3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
a pinch of ground cardamon
1 1/2 tbsp tahini
sesame seeds to garnish or roll in to taste
olive oil (optional)

Method
Soak the chickpeas overnight in cold water.
Drain well.
Combine all ingredients in a food processor.
Set aside for 30 minutes to develop flavours.
Preheat oven to 220°C.
Line two baking trays with baking paper.
Use a teaspoon to scoop mixture, and roll into slightly flattened balls. Place directly onto baking paper - or onto a plate first if you're not sure about spacing.
Garnish with a pinch of sesame seeds - gently pat into the surface on top. Or, roll in sesame seeds if you are that way inclined!
Optional: spray lightly with olive oil. I use a refillable atomiser. The oil adds extra flavour and helps them brown up nicely, but you will still get a reasonable result without it.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Serve hot with dips. Hommus, tzatziki and aioli are harmonious combinations with these falafels.
Serve cold in a vegetarian/salad sandwich in place of meat.
Can be frozen.

LadyMeerkat's Perfect Pot of Tea

It might seem obvious but if you want to have the perfect cup or two of teapot tea then you don't want to drown the tea leaves in excess water.

Swirl some hot water around the pot to warm it up. Do the same with the cups and the measuring jug if you want to be really thorough, especially if it's Winter!
Measure out however many cups of tea you need by the metric cup (1 cup = 250ml) with a heat proof measuring jug.
Add one heaped teaspoon of tea to the pot for however many cups of tea you want to make, PLUS one for the pot. One cup of tea = 2tsp  Two cups of tea = 3tsp etc
Add water and brew to taste.

cU  \(~)?  cU



Green Thumb Tip:
Scatter the spent tea leaves widely over your garden beds or add to your compost / mulch heap. I like to scoop them out with a tea spoon then rinse out the pot and pour that water in the garden as well.

Penne with salmon, mushrooms and bocconcini

I intended to revisit my mushroom and salmon dish but the bocconcini turned up and there were fresh herbs in the garden - including some dill going to seed - so I ended up with this. I think it's better! You can use bigger bocconcini but you will need to cut them up smaller.



Penne with salmon, mushrooms and bocconcini

Ingredients
1/2 cup bambini/baby bocconcini, halved
500g penne
1 clove garlic, crushed
100g smoked salmon, sliced
250g button mushrooms, sliced
3 sprigs dill
3 sprigs oregano
5 basil leaves
olive oil
canola oil
ground pepper
chicken salt


Method

• Cook pasta. Drizzle with olive oil and set aside.
• Finely chop herbs.
• Fry garlic in a little olive oil.
• Add more oil and button mushrooms.
• When mushrooms are almost cooked, add salmon and herbs. Stir occasionally until salmon is cooked.
• Add cooked mixture and bocconcini to warm pasta. Season and stir through.
• Serve warm immediately or refrigerate and serve cold.

Dandelion root coffee tips

Previously my housemate F, and I went to CERES open day back in July where I enjoyed a dandelion latte at the cafe. It has a pleasant earthy, nutty taste. After that it seemed worthwhile to try making my own dandelion coffee.  I dug up about a bucket's worth of weed, trimmed them back using poultry shears and washed them as throughly as I could, chopped, roasted and food processed them into a coffee like powder. The washing part of the process is the most labour intensive.

Among the countless roots we handled there was this little guy who deserved a close up and is the main reason why you get to read this at all. Other tutorials are sufficient, though after writing this I realise they don't give you exactly the same tips about cleaning. What started out as context for a picture post has become a partial instructional piece.




We had a two person working bee* collecting all of the dandelion we could find to make dandelion coffee. We had decided to reseed the 'lawn' so harvesting dandelion was a byproduct of that process. We made several batches of coffee and found it was slightly less onerous doing it between us. However F no longer finds the smell of it appetising and has not drunk any of it as coffee. More on that later.

After about six or so batches within a week this is what I found to be the best way to clean the roots:

• Agitating the roots in a bucket of water gives limited results. A sieve or mesh and a hose - over a bucket if you want to collect the water - worked a lot better and used less water.
• Trim away all trace of stalk and greenery using poultry shears. They're good for fine snipping and wet objects.
• Wash them in the kitchensink, immersing them in a bowl of water - wear rubber gloves because you're going to be there a while. Use a butterknife to gouge out any fiddly cruddy bits.

I popped online to read a few tutorials and slapped it together based on more than one set of instructions. You could say I followed this one, however this one seems to have some goods ideas that I might try if I/we ever do it again. We used a granite mortar and pestle to grind the later batches for a more even grind and less to clean up. The roasted roots caused some slight scratching to the food processor bowl and discolouration so processing before roasting might be worth exploring. Note that 250F is about 121C ie a cool oven. I made the mistake of thinking that the instructions mentioning 250 degrees in more than one instructional were in celsius and over roasted my first batch. The coffee beverage from that was fine but an unappetising grey!

One bucket - about 10 litres - of untrimmed roots yields about a quarter of a cup of coffee grounds at best. I make dandelion coffee by running it through my stove top coffee pot using similar amounts as I would for regular coffee grounds. It's lovely sweetened with honey. Limit yourself to one cup though because although it's caffiene free, like coffee it can still have a diuretic and a laxative effect.

F made a rum infusion and served it at our party on the weekend in a cocktail. She took a quarter of a cup of dandelion root grounds and infused it for about 3 weeks in a 700ml bottle of light rum. She then strained it using muslin. We came up with the idea of serving it with a melon balled scoop of vanilla icecream in a shot sized glass as a sort of affogato. It was delicious and our guests seemed to enjoy it. This infusion cocktail is recommended only for recreational purposes in responsible amounts - other sites mention similar alcohol infusions for medicinal use by the spoonful.

F writes: 'White rum. 4 shots infusion, 3 shots milk, 1 shot honey water. Shake with ice, put little ice-cream balls in 8 glasses, pour over. Honey water = honey:water 1:1'


*Can it still be called that if it's just two of you?

Wonderful cook!

I sat on the tram to work earlier this week with 3 older ladies, who I think I've sat with before or possibly served in my shop. Anyhow they were chatting about how many cookbooks and cooking magazines they had and didn't use, how they'd been sorting through them. One lady said after talking about the assorted magazines she had accumulated around the house said
"I've got _so_ many! When I die they will think 'She must have been a _wonderful_ cook!', when all I've got is a wonderful collection [chuckles]".

Preserved Moroccan style lemons.

This recipe is for a basic Moroccan style preserved lemon. The actual recipe is very easy but the technique for stuffing the lemons can be fiddly and potentially wasteful so I'd like to visually share my technique with you to help you get the best result and prettiest jars!

The finished product goes beautifully with meat and fish. Most Morrocan recipes call for only the rinsed and finely choped rind but if you like things extra lemony you can try using the pulp as well in your cooking.

You will need:
1 wide mouthed 1L jar, sterilised*
up to 12 or so, small, thin skinned lemons
1/2 tsp peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup rock salt

Some of the lemons will be preserved in the jar/s others will be juiced only. Start with your preserving lemons first which the instructions will refer to.

Gently wash lemons in warm water with a soft bristled brush. This is to remove the natural waxes on the skin.

Hold lemon, stalk end down and use a small knife cut into lengthwise quarters but ensure quarters are still joined at the base like the petals of a flower.

Over your chopping board, put a small amount of rock salt into the lemon quarters to seperate them from each other like this:


Hold the lemon on its side and prise the quarters apart to fill. Use the side of the spoon to fill and push in the salt. Give it a squeeze to hold in place as you continue to repeat between the other sections.


This isn't full yet! I have found it's best to gradually stuff them with salt rather than try to get it all in at once.


A fully stuffed lemon.


Put the filled lemons into the jar one by one. You should squish them in to truly fill the jar and release some of the juice. When the jar is half full add the peppercorns and bayleaf. Once it's full of lemons you can juice the remaining lemons. Add the remaining salt, including any salt spilling from the stuffing process, to the jar. Cover lemons with lemon juice. Close and gently shake. Store in a cool, dark place for 6 weeks, shaking the jar once a week. The liquid should eventually clear up and the lemon pith will turn yellow. Then, it's ready to cook with! Store in refridgerator for around 6 months.



You can divide the ingredients between more than one jar so there's one for you and one for a gift. I've used a 500ml, La Parfait jar and an old olive jar. The tall jar should fit another lemon to really cram it full but I wanted it to be pretty :P




*STERILISING JARS must be done to ensure the shelf life and food safety of your preserve.
There are a few ways to do it, but never use a towel to dry! Also note that this is only part of what you need to do when making jam or other hot mixtures, in which case the boiling water bath method is necessary.
Anyhoo:
1 You can wash them in hot soapy water then dry them upside down on a clean tray, in a cool oven (100-130C) for 15 minutes. OR
2 My manager who has made prize winning jellies and preserves recommends the microwave technique because it's quick and easy. Fill jars with hot water and microwave for a couple of minutes. Then dry in the oven as above or for this recipe, empty and allow to cool a little. OR
3 Putting jars through the dishwasher on a hot cycle will also sterilise them. Immerse the rubber seals and metal parts in boiling water for a few minutes until you're ready to use them. OR
4 Fully immerse in boiling water for 10 minutes then oven dry.

Metal lids and rubber seals can be immersed in boiling water for 5 minutes.

Smoked Salmon and Mushroom Salad

I came up with this recipe while on my evening walk. I had a packet of salmon close to its use by date, and was brainstorming a lean, healthy way to use it. I had all of the other ingredients.

This was so delicious I thought I'd better write it down and share it :) Keep in mind that sambal oelek is a crushed chilli paste so those of the faint palette may wish to reduce the quantity of it. Chilli is good for speeding up your metabolism.

Smoked Salmon and Mushroom Salad
4 or 5 leaves of red oak leaf lettuce (to cover a dinner plate), whole or sliced as you prefer
4 or 5 button mushrooms (about a handful), sliced
2 or 3 slices of smoked salmon
2 tsp capers, rinsed
1 tsp sambal oelek
1 clove of garlic, crushed
a splash of olive oil
a splash of lemon juice

Spread the lettuce over a dinner plate.
Chop or rip up the smoked salmon. Distribute it over the lettuce. Keep plate in fridge until ready to serve.
Warm the oil in a small frying pan, saute the garlic.
Add capers and crush them with a wooden spoon. Heat through.
Add sambal oelek and stir through.
Add mushrooms. Stir through then cover. Fry until soft.
Stir through a splash of lemon juice to moisten, then allow to evaporate a little.
Distribute over the salmon and lettuce.
Serve immediately.

Serves 1.

Tiramisu

I made this :)



Recipe from here. Dusted with Dutch cocoa powder.
To create strawberry garnish:

1. Wash and dry fresh strawberries, preferably more than what you think you will need so you can practice. For best results, select berries of a uniform size and shape.
2. Use a sharp paring (small, smooth blade, pointed) knife to carefully slice strawberry from tip to hull into four or five slices, but not all the way through. You need the hull to hold the slices together.
3. Gently fan out the slices.

Cocktail Recipe: The Polar Bear

Listening to: Happiness by Goldfrapp from Seventh Tree

Ah vodka how I love thee. Let me count the ways. 1, 2, 3, 4...

I came up with this new way, earlier this evening.

The Polar Bear

In a high ball glass build in the following order;

two or three scoops of lemon/lime sorbet,

a two or three fingers of vodka,

fill with soda water.

Stir with preferably with a metal straw-spoon -it is the biz and maximises ya fizz!.

Chai Tea with kick

Listening to The Way I Are by Timberland

Chai lattés right now are the hottest thing since ... café lattés a few years ago. Most cafés make them.
What about when you're at home?
Try this:
Brew some chai tea (I'm sure loose leaf is best but I have only bags myself).
Sweeten with honey. Sugar cubes daintily dropped into your cup with sugar tongs are fun as well :)
Sprinkle a shake of ground cinnamon, then stir it in.
Stir in a shot of Vanilla Galliano.
Delish!

Recipe: Banana Smoothie

2 ripe bananas (over ripe is even better!)
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground nutmeg
2 tsp powdered drinking chocolate

Blend all ingredients together :)
Serves 2.

Cocktail Recipes: Ski Lift and Tropical Hobbit

Warm drink, known as a Ski Lift in the cocktail book* I have.
Make a yourself a hot chocolate as you normally would. Add to your cup:
1/2 measure of Malibu
1 measure of peach schnapps
Stir
Gives you a nice warm glow :)

Cold drink - my own concoction. Do you think we could get the name kiwi fruit changed to hobbit fruit? :P
Tropical Hobbit
1 mango chopped
2 kiwifruit peeled and chopped
1 cup or so of orange juice
Blend ingredients together. Drink up!


* Walton S, Olivier S, Farrow J, 'The Bartender's Companion to 750 Cocktails', Hermes House (Anness Publishing), London, 2005
This book is excellent value, with a wide range of cocktails, juices, smoothies and an index by cocktail name and ingredient. It also gives you information on liquors you might not know a lot (or anything) about.

Cocktail Recipe: The Meerkat

Listening to: Flute Concerto in D, Op. 27; I - Allegro moderato by Luigi Boccherini

I have developed a cocktail. Nothing fancy - it's a sexed up and sophisticated version of a vodka tonic. Tonic water has such a distinctive, strong flavour so it isn't used in many cocktails. You have the G&T and the V&T. This is my ode to tonic water which I think is delicious and worthy of being in more than a simple 2 part cocktail. I've added my own flourishes to make it special. It's so very refreshing on a hot day and because it's built rather than shaken, no fuss at all to make. Like all good inventions it was created out of necessity. We didn't have any lemonade!

Here's how to make The Meerkat.

The Meerkat
Build over ice in a tall glass:
1 measure* vodka;
half a measure of old fashioned lime cordial;
half a measure of lime juice.
Fill with tonic water.

Garnishes to try:
A slice or curl of lime.
A slice or curl of lemon.
An intact or lightly crushed (between your fingers not muddled), fresh mint leaf. Delicious!



*measure = 30ml

Website of the Day
I saw the figures at my local toy shop this morning.
Mega Bloks (ala Lego clone) does Pirates of the Carribean
OMG there's an animation of it on the website! [lol 'til my eyes water]