Stuffed Butternut Squash

04.08.2015 by Trish // 4 Comments

What happens in your freezer drawer when you are not looking? I mean, I am sure I Iabel everything I put in the freezer – really, I do!! And yet somehow my freezer seems to be inhabited by strange frozen blocks whose content I am unable to identify because the label, which I am sure I put on, has disappeared.

In can be quite challenging when the block you thought was the stewed apple and rhubarb you were going to use to make fruit crumble turns out to be chilli beef and beans…and yes that really happens! So my Saturday night dessert turned into Sunday brunch – Stuffed Butternut Squash.This is great to use up that little portion of spaghetti sauce, chilli or stew that would otherwise sit in a plastic container in the fridge and grow fur.

Butternut sqaush — Butternut squash ready for stuffing

STUFFED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

INGREDIENTS

Leftovers such as spaghetti sauce, chilli, stew etc . I used chilli beef and beans.
Butternut squash as required
Haloumi cheese
Parsley and lime for garnish

METHOD

Heat oven to 180C
Cut squash at the top of the bulb. Scoop out seeds. These can be cleaned, seasoned wit oil, salt and pepper and cooked for snacks at the same time. Keep the rest of the squash for soup, roast, salads etc.
Fill bulb with leftover and brush the skin with olive oil.
Pop into the oven for about half to three quarters of an hour until the squash is browned and the flesh cooked
Slice haloumi and fry or grill until golden brown. This can be done once the squash is out of the oven so the haloumi is served while it is hot and soft and gooey inside. If you do it too soon the helium can become rubbery.
Garnish with lime and parsley and enjoy!!

Stuffed Butternut Squash with Haloumi — Butternut Squash stuffed with Beef Chilli and Beans

Delicious! I was thinking I could use the haloumi like toast soldiers and boiled eggs, but they were too bendy. If anyone has any other ideas for stuffing, please share!

Really Easy Gluten Free Hot Cross Buns

03.31.2015 by Trish // 1 Comment

When the first hot cross buns were being swapped for Christmas decorations on the supermarket shelves I had a moment of confusion thinking it was March and I’d missed a quarter of the year already! Of course it was only the 3rd of January, but as usual I thought “I’ll make my own buns this year”…..only I usually don’t!

This year of course was going to be different, no more more lining up at Baker’s Delight on Easter Thursday. But here we are, less than one week until Easter, and I haven’t even put in my order with the Ferraro Rocher Bunny, let alone thought about making hot cross buns. I did however get to thinking about making gluten free hot cross buns after I asked a gluten intolerant friend how many places she could get gfhcb’s in our town. I will translate her answer for you – none!

Most of the recipes I found online involved making a gluten free flour mix which I had neither the time nor the inclination to do, but I finally found a recipe from a commercial gluten flour website. It was basically combine the wet ingredients, combine the dry ingredients, then mix them together, form the buns, let them rise, then bake. My kind of recipe!!

So this was my first effort. They started off promisingly enough, little rolls of dough ready for rising, I was optimistic. There was the small problem that I ran out of baking paper, but never mind I floured the tray as you do when making scones. Actually I floured it twice because the first time I used ordinary flour which sort of defeated the purpose of making gluten free buns

I popped out for the allotted hour so I wouldn’t keep prodding at them while they did their rising bit…hmmm, not quite what I expected when I got home full of anticipation, hot cross biscuit!

I thought I would cook it anyway. I wanted to see what they tasted like and who knows maybe I will have created something new!

Ok, maybe not! It didn’t taste too bad albeit a bit chewy.

Second try, at 5:00am the next morning, I decided to put a little less milk, and even though the author of the recipe said you could pop the yeast straight into the flour mixture, I warmed the milk and let the yeast froth in it for a bit.

So this was my next effort. This time I hung around and watched to make sure there was no merging of buns. Much better!

In fact I was pretty chuffed when they came out of the oven!

My only problem was that I hadn’t made a deep enough cut when I left them to rise, so there wasn’t a neat little cross furrow to put the icing into. I also have a suspicion that neat pouring of the icing into the cross furrow may not be as easy as it sounds. However I’m pretty happy with my second effort – gluten free, cross free hot cross buns!!

I tested them on group of girls where I work, some said they weren’t sweet enough, some said they were just right. They were fine for me but I think a little extra honey wouldn’t go astray if you have a sweeter tooth. Someone suggested dried apricots which sounded ok. Interestingly enough no-one actually realised they were gluten free!

Overall a really easy recipe – 2 and a half hours from beginning to ready to eat. Maybe a bit longer if you actually put the crosses on. I will certainly try them again but I would be interested if anyone had an alternative recipe.

This recipe is adapted from a recipe on the gfJules Gluten Free Flour website. Jules has dairy and sugar free options in her recipe. I have not used them here.

PS Since publishing this blog I decided that you really can’t have a hot cross bun without a cross, so I had a little play and have come up with Cream Cheese Crosses. Simply added some icing sugar and lemon juice to cream cheese to taste, cut a cross in the bun with a sharp knife and spoon the icing into the cross.

GLUTEN FREE HOT CROSS BUNS

INGREDIENTS

Buns:

2 Eggs, Room Temperature
1/3 Cup Sour Cream
1/2 Cup Milk
3 Tbs. Melted Coconut Oil or Light Olive Oil
6 Tbs. Honey ( I used Rice Malt Syrup)
1/2 Tsp. Orange Or Lemon Extract
2 Cups all purpose gluten free flour
2 Tbs. Flaxseed Meal (I used almond meal)
1 Tsp. Salt
2 Tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice (Or Mixture Of Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger And Cloves) I used half a teaspoon of each
1/2 Tsp. Allspice
1 Tbs. Freshly Grated Orange Or Lemon Zest (Or Use Dried Orange Or Lemon Peel)
1 packet of yeast
1 cup Baking Raisins (Or Regular Raisins, Boiled In Water, Then Well Drained) I used currants

Egg wash:

1 Large Egg + 1 Tbs. Water

Icing:

1 Cup Confectioner’s Sugar
1 1/4 – 1 1/2 Tbs. Milk,
1 Tsp. Freshly Grated Orange Or Lemon Zest
1/4 Tsp. Orange Or Lemon Extract

METHOD

In a large mixing bowl, stir the eggs, sour cream, milk, oil, agave and extract.
In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Slowly stir into the large mixing bowl, using a paddle attachment on a stand mixer, or mixing by hand with a wooden spoon.
Beat for 2 minutes until all ingredients are integrated well, then stir in the raisins.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Scoop batter onto parchment using an ice cream scoop or large spoon. They should form approximately 10 smooth buns (wet a rubber spatula to smooth tops, if necessary). Cut a cross slightly into the top of each bun using a sharp knife, rocking back and forth to slightly separate into four sections. (I actually found this really difficult, I kept tearing at the dough rather than cutting)
Set aside to rise in a warm area for 1 hour (on top of a preheating oven, or in an oven preheated to 200F, then turned off, is a good place to rise the buns). Once risen, brush buns with egg wash.
Preheat oven to 190C or 170C (fan-forced).
Bake buns for 20 minutes. Remove to cool.
Whisk together the icing ingredients, taking care not to add too much liquid or the icing will drip all the way off the buns. Once the buns are fully cooled, slowly spoon icing in a line across each cut of the cross on the top of the buns.
Makes 10 buns.

Breakfast Burritos

03.22.2015 by Trish // 4 Comments

As the ‘must have’ breakfast it seems like overnight oats and chia bowls are out. I’m sorry I missed that boat blog -wise because I am sure my amaranth flake, chia seed, macca scented, super greens infused pot served with yak yoghurt and cherries from the north side of Mt Fuji would have been a hit with you all. Really.

But I’m not missing the next boat, no siree bob. I’m right at the head of the breakfast burritos queue for that boat. They are popping up everywhere – celebrity chefs, food bloggers, weekend magazines – the lazy weekend brunch of the moment is breakfast burritos. I made them for our Saturday family breakfast and I think they are a winner!

There’s something wonderful about getting together and preparing food. I made the burrito dough early in the morning so that it had time to sit and for the glutens to do whatever they do. It was a such a lovely morning, outside in the Geraldton sunshine with my girls, preparing breakfast and catching up on what we had watched on TV that week (Gogglebox, Real Housewives of Melbourne, Hiding and Bar Rescue. My mother never did reconcile to the fact that her daughter passed on her love of trashy TV to her granddaughters ) Really, life doesn’t get much better than that!

Rolling pin and burrito dough — Ready to roll!!

I rolled, Liz cooked and Jess made the scrambled eggs. I am not that skilled with the rolling pin, and the first few efforts weren’t quite circular, but I got better.

small rolls of burrito dough and rolling pin — 8 balls of burrito dough, ready for shaping

Rolling pin and rolled burrito — I think I might need some practice at this!

I found that if you flattened the ball of dough into a circular disc first then it was much easier to keep a circle as you rolled. I know that many of you are probably saying “Well, derrrr” but I’m just learning ok?

Disc of burrito dough — Flatten before rolling into a disc…..

Rolled burrito — …and it’s easier to make them sort of circular

Getting the burritos from the board into the pan proved to be a problem because they sorted stretched out of shape and crumpled up – so much to learn about making a simple burrito!

A wonky burrito — It’s a bit wonky but smelling good

But overall they were delicious. Jess made scrambled eggs with the very extravagant addition of a couple of egg yolks to the usual mixture. We served the burritos spread with cream cheese and added smoke salmon, chopped tomatoes, scrambled ages and chopped parsley. So yum!!

Burrito with toppings — Breakfast sunshine

BREAKFAST BURRITOS

INGREDIENTS

1 cup whole wheat flour (I used wholemeal spelt)
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup water
3 T Olive Oil
Breakfast toppings such as scrambled eggs, tomatoes, cream cheese, smoked salmon, avocado

METHOD

Mix together flours and salt.
Add water and oil and combine everything with your hands.
Turn dough onto floured surface and knead until smooth
Divide into 8 balls and press each ball into a round disc.
Roll into a thin circle.
Cook each burrito on a hot griddle until both sides are golden.
Add toppings and enjoy!

I am certainly going to try these again. Any suggestions for toppings?

Green papaya salad

03.16.2015 by Trish // Leave a Comment

Sunday is my favourite day of the week. I always go to Skeetas on the marina ; sometimes I walk, sometimes I ride my bike, depending how windy it is and whether I really feel like battling a southerly all the way home on my deadly treadly. I have coffee, chat to other Sunday morning regulars and gaze at the ocean and the boats. I like to do some writing, but mostly it’s where I do my dreaming.

Just over the road from Skeetas are the Geraldton Railway Markets. My girlfriend sells the most amazing granola ever at her stall, (Red Lime Jones, remember that name and that you heard it from me first!) and I take her a coffee to help her get through the early morning start. The Railway Markets is a great little community and I love wandering through the stalls, checking out the produce and chatting to stall owners, catching up with friends. The act of picking up a piece of produce, feeling it gently, smelling it, talking to the stall owner about it and how they use it, asking the lady next to me how she is going to serve it, thinking about the meal I am going to make with it, who will be sharing it. It is such an age old ritual and fills my heart with love and joy.

One of the true characters of the markets is Freddie Fresh. He sells vegetables and seedlings and stuff to make your veggies grow great. Freddie is always happy to give you tips about growing your veggies and how to get rid of bugs – he’s my go-to garden guru! Last week I bought a pawpaw because it was from his tree, they are not my favourite fruit but it’s summer and I thought I could make something fresh and cooling.

Freddie and me with pawpaw — Me and my mate Freddie

It sat in my fruit bowl for a week because I didn’t really know what to do with it, until finally I though if I cut it, it might give me inspiration. But inside, instead of that gorgeous, luscious orange flesh gleaming with shiny black pearls, I found white. It was pretty enough, delicate white with a blush of green and creamy white seeds, but definitely not what I was expecting. First thought, what on earth am I going to do with this, followed quickly by second thought, green papaya salad, yay!!! When I go to Thailand one of the first things I do is look for green papaya salad followed by sticky mango rice. Surely a meal made in heaven.

Green pawpaw — Not quite what I expected

So the decision was made, all I needed was a recipe. Oh Google, how I love thee!! One of the first recipes I saw was from a TV series, “Luke Nguyen’s Vietnam”. Luke is a Vietnamese Australian chef who owns the Red Lantern, one of Australia’s most famous Vietnamese restaurants. It was probably authentic, and I had all the ingredients…almost! Luke’s recipe called for liquid palm sugar which I didn’t have so, I substituted malt rice syrup. I thought I had snake beans, then I remembered I’d used them all in a vegetable curry last week. But I had bean sprouts so I used them instead .

Slice of lime on grated green pawpaw — Lime juice to add the sour

I loved making this salad, pounding all the ingredients and releasing all those gorgeous smells, the chilli and garlic, then the lime juice. Someone really knew what they were doing when they created those flavours!

Green pawpaw with mortar and pestle — Pounding the green pawpaw with all the other ingredients to release the gorgeous flavours

And here it is, my slightly modified version of Luke Nguyen’s Green Papaya Salad. It has inspired me to get out my Thai Street Markets book and do some more Thai cooking. I would love to know what your favourite Thai dish is.

GREEN PAPAYA SALAD

INGREDIENTS

4 bird’s-eye chillies
4 garlic cloves
4 snake beans, cut into 3 cm lengths (I used a handful of bean sprouts)
1 tomato, sliced (or 5 cherry tomatoes, halved)
1 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp dried shrimp
1 tbsp liquid palm sugar (I used rice malt syrup)
2 tbsp fish sauce
200 g shredded green papaya
1 tbsp roasted peanuts

METHOD

Using a large wooden mortar and pestle, pound the chilli.
Add the garlic and pound. Add the snake beans (bean sprouts) and bruise slightly.
Add the tomatoes and pound.
Add the lime juice and dried shrimp.
Continue pounding, gradually adding the palm sugar (rice malt syrup) and fish sauce.
Add the papaya. Continue gently pounding while mixing with a spoon for 1 minute.
Transfer to a serving plate. Garnish with crushed peanuts to serve.

Green papaya salad with chopsticks — Green papaya salad