Jamie's 30 Minute Meals - Pinenut, Sun-dried Tomato and Cucumber Salad

This is the salad that Jamie Oliver creates with his Oozy Mushroom Risotto. Again, I have tried to write out what he has written and included some pics. They were for my use but thought I would share as the Mushroom Risotto is gorgeous and the salad is very fresh and zingy.

Ingredients

Pine nuts

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Sundried Tomatoes

Lemon

Packet of Baby Spinach leaves

Cucumber (Lebanese)

Mint

Parmesan Cheese

Method

In a heavy based pan lightly toast 200 grams of pine nuts.

Add to 3 tbspn of olive oil to a large salad bowl. Add 1 tbspn balsamic vinegar. Add 5 or 6 sundried tomatoes roughly cut in 1cm strips, squeeze in half a lemon, add a sprinkle of salt and  give it all a gentle mix in the bowl with your fingers.

Cut a packet of baby spinach leaves into 1 cm strips (Jamie gently holds the whole batch in a ball and cuts with a sharp knife).  Place on top of the dressing the bowl but don’t mix through until you are ready to serve.

Score the outside of a cucumber (I used a Lebanese but I think Jamie used the really long one that comes in plastic) then cut in half and then cut on angle in centimetre cuts.  Place the cucumber in the bowl on top of the salad.

 

Rip up a few sprigs of mint and throw on top.

Now dress the salad by gently tossing everything through with your fingers.  Make sure everything is scrummy and coated.

Now add the hot toasted pine nuts.  Add a few scrapes of parmesan cheese (maybe a couple of tbspns) and enjoy:)

The salad is from Series 1, Episode 8 where Jamie Oliver makes Oozy Mushroom Risotto, this salad and a yummy lemon, raspberry and gingernut desert. I am going to try and make the desert at a later date and will add it to this site if it's a success:)

All pictures are taken from the television program - Jamie's 30 Minute Meals

Sweet Potato and Chickpea Salad - Healthy salad :)

Made a yummy salad last night and thought I would share.

1 large sweet potato (orange/gold) about 400g
1 large onion
1/2 cup of low fat natural yoghurt
2 tbs coriander
1 tbs lemon juice
1 x 400g of chickpeas
60g of rocket

Dice the sw. potato into 1.5cm cube. Cut onion into wedges.  Put on a baking tray and spray with olive oil and bake in oven (180 degrees C) for about 25 minutes or until cooked (when you can poke the sw. potato with a fork and its soft enough to skewer).

When this is cooked let it cool for about about 5 to 10 minutes then place in a salad bowl.

Drain can of chickpeas (rinse them with water if you like) then place them in the salad bowl as well.  Wash rocket and add to salad bowl.

Combine yoghurt, lemon juice and coriander (i use the squeezy tube of coriander but you can use fresh as well) in a bowl and then mix through the salad.

You are ready to serve and eat.

YUMMY!

Asparagus salad with lime dressing

1 bunch of asparagus

250g of frozen baby peas

½ red capsicum

½ red onion (or white doesn’t really matter)

½ cup of fresh lime juice

½ cup of fresh mint leaves

2 tsp brown sugar

Cut off the woody ends of the asparagus and cut into 2.5cm pieces.  Lightly oil a pan (spray it with olive oil) and stir fry the asparagus until tender

Transfer to a salad bowl

Cook peas as per instructions on pack (boil for 2-4 minutes) and drain in a colander and rinse them with cold water. Add to the salad bowl.

Finely chop the capsicum and onion.  Combine lime juice, mint and sugar in a bowl. Add in capsicum and onion.

Add mixture all together in salad bowl. Stir and Serve.

A yummy fresh spring salad:)  This one was taken from September AGT but I have modified it a little.

Potato, Parsnip and Horseradish Mash

4 desiree potatoes (about 750g), peeled and quartered
3 parsnips (about 500g), peeled and chopped
½ cup of skim milk
1 tbs extra light sour cream
2 tsp horseradish cream

Cook potato and parsnip in a saucepan of salted boiling water for 20 mins or until tender.  Drain and return to pan.

Add the milk, sour cream and horseradish to the pan and mash until smooth.  Add salt and pepper as desired.

This is a direct take from an AGT September magazine.  I don’t normally like mash but this was yummy as can be.  I add in more horseradish as I love it.

This makes a lot of mash

Porcupine Balls

This is a recipe that a Hungarian lady taught me how to make, many, many moons ago. I have been trying to remember how to make it but here is a basic recipe.

500 grams lean ground beef
1/3 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove of garlic - crushed/minced
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
dash ground black pepper
1 can condensed tomato soup
1/2 teaspoon chili powder (or 1/2 teaspon of minced fresh chilli if your brave)
1/2 cup water

Combine the ground beef, rice, onion, garlic, 1/4 cup of the water, salt, and pepper. Shape meat mixture into 12 to 15 meat balls. Combine the soup, chili powder, and water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil.

Add meatballs; reduce heat, cover, and simmer over very low heat for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

***
This is really simple to make and is quite yummy. I actually follow the instructions on the soup can and add a can of water to the mix. I have also added on top of this a cup of tomato soup as well (the packet plus the cup of water). Don't ask me why - its a bit spicier I guess. Also, instead of chilli powder I use about half a teaspon of chopped chilli but this can be quite hot.

B. suggests actually putting spaghetti with it but then this would feed about 8 people! We are trying to the spaghetti next time:)

Very Alcoholic Lemonade

Just fiddling in the kitchen and came up with this...

Ice - cubed or crushed in a glass.  Serve with...
Two or Three Squirts of Angostura Bitters
A Nip of Gin
Diet (Woolies) Lemondae

Very yummy!!

Fuzzy Orange Bumble Bee

Another gin recipe I mixed up.  I call this the fuzzy orange bumble bee!

Glass of Crushed Ice
Nip of Gin (30 mls)
Squeeze of Honey
Juice from half an orange
Juice from half a lemon
Kaffir Lime Leaf
Diet Lemonade (Woolies Brand is yummy)

Mix honey, orange, lemon until honey has melted (sometimes it doesn't - oh well!).  Fill a glass with crushed ice (or cubed - I like cubes).  Pour in the juice mix. Add gin.  Top up mixture with a few splashes of lemonade.  Top with kaffir lime!  Stir:)

So sweet and yummy:)

Dhal Tadka

I was inspired by Kirstin, who fb'd about a Red Lentil Dhal recipe. So much so, I had to rush off and look in my cupboard and see if I could make Dhal.  I actually found a box of 'Maharaja's Choice' Dhal Tadka that I forgot I had purchased and quickly nuked it and ate it.  It was yummy-yummy-yummy.  I have always been put off by dhal but Kirstin's recipe looked so simple.

So I googled away...found this Dal Tadka and made my own version.

Dhal Tadka (Idiot proof!, Spicy, Winter Warmer, Makes 2 big bowls - double as needed)
Vegan Friendly


Ingredients

Quarter pack of yellow split peas (roughly 125g) known as tor dal
2 cups of water
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tablespoon of garlic garden gourmet squeezy or 3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon of ginger paste or 1cm piece ginger, crushed

2 tbsp vegetable oil
Half a tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 to 3 dry chillies
5 to 8 curry leaves (I bought the fresh from Farmer's Market and froze them)
Chilli powder (I used a teaspoon of Sambal Olek - as I have run out of chilli!)
Pinch of asafoetida powder
200g chopped tomatoes - (about 2 big over ripe tomatoes chopped)
Coriander leaves or a small squeeze of garden gourmet coriander

Method:
1. Wash and drain the split peas in a colander.

2. Put into a heavy based pan with water. Add turmeric and boil for 45 to 60 minutes until the dal is soft when pressed between the thumb and index finger.

3. In a mortar and pestle, pound garlic and ginger with a good pinch of salt to a paste. Alternatively you can use ready Ginger Garlic Paste

4. Heat oil in a small pan over low heat. Add mustard seeds and allow to pop. Add cumin seeds, dried chillies, curry leaves, chilli powder, asafoetida, ginger and garlic paste and fry. Pour the hot flavoured oil into the dal and stir well.

5. Add chopped tomatoes and simmer for another 10 minutes.

6. Season with salt and garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rotis or rice.  I had garlic chapati which you can buy from coles/woolies. I gave it a quick grill.  I also added a squeeze of lemon juice. Yummy.