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Indian Spiced scrambled eggs with curry leaves is a wonderful way to add fresh flavour and variety to a breakfast classic. I love to serve mine with roti, naan or paratha, and grilled tomato.  Serves 2
Ingredients: 2-3 tsp ghee or butter 4 eggs ¼ tsp mustard seeds, brown or yellow ¼ tsp ground ginger ½ tsp turmeric 6 or 7 curry leaves Salt and pepper Toast, roti, naan or paratha to serve Method: Whisk eggs in a bowl or jug together with a small splash of water (or cream if you're feeling decadent). Heat a frypan over medium-low heat, add ghee or butter. Add all the spices and stir for 30 seconds or so before pouring the whisked eggs in. Turn heat to low. Low and slow is the secret to creamy scrambled eggs. Don't scramble the eggs so much as keep them moving with your spatula or wooden spoon. The aim is to keep gently lifting the egg mixture off the bottom of the pan. They need to cook slowly and gradually, over a few minutes. When they are almost cooked, spoon the scrambled eggs onto your serving plates; they will continue to cook for a minute after leaving the pan, and if you leave them in the pan until they are perfectly cooked, they'll be overcooked by the time you sit down to enjoy them. Serve with your choice of bread or toast, plus any sides you fancy. PIMP MY RECIPE Paneer goes beautifully with these eggs. Crumble them over the eggs as they are cooking. Leftover potato is an utterly perfect accompaniment to Indian spiced eggs. Cut cooked potato into small cubes and fry over a high heat, adding a few mustard seeds if you like. Delicious! Chopped shallot is another yummy garnish, as is coriander. Green chilli is a delicious garnish if you want things spicy. You can also try eggplant or lime pickle to really ramp up the flavour.
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Universally loved by 97% of children and grown-ups alike, it's hard to go wrong with pasta and a simple red sauce. But what if you don't have tinned tomatoes on hand? Or you don't have the extra time needed to turn those tinned tomatoes into a sauce? Tomato powder to the rescue! In seconds, tomato powder can be turned into the most gloriously silky, full bodied and satisfying red sauce. Made from 100% dried tomatoes, you can use it in pasta, soups, casseroles, jaffles, nachos and parmigiana! See under recipe for more ideas on how to use tomato powder. Here I've paired it with our popular zoo pasta for a simple, 15 minute dinner. My kids and I love this dish, and I bet you will too!  Serves 3-4
Ingredients: 300g zoo pasta 50g/2 tbsp tomato powder 2 handfuls broccoli florets ½ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese Salt and pepper to taste +1 cup reserved pasta water Method: Fill a large pot with water, add 2 tsp salt. Bring to a boil then add pasta. The pasta takes aprox 12 mins to cook. At the 9 or 10 minute mark, add broccoli to the pasta pot. Then take a ladle or large spoon and scoop out 1 cup of the pasta water and pour it into a jug or small saucepan. At the 11 minute mark (or when pasta is al dente), drain pasta and broccoli, then return it to the pot. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over it. Set aside while you make your quick-as-a-flash sauce. Sauce: add tomato powder to the cup of reserved pasta water, then whisk together til smooth. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Place pasta and broccoli into serving bowls, then spoon the silky red sauce on top. Finish with grated parmesan or cheddar if desired. PIMP MY RECIPE
SOME MORE USES FOR TOMATO POWDER
A customer came in last week for split green peas. With Sydney having the coldest weather for 37 years, she said it was the perfect time to make her grandmother Val's pea and ham soup, beloved and treasured by her family as much as Val herself is. I asked her for the recipe, and said I would love to share it in our newsletter. She said Val would be utterly delighted to see her recipe being shared and enjoyed by others. So here it is. I've included directions for both stove top and slow cooker.  Ingredients:
500g dried split green peas 1-1.5kg ham hock 2 garlic cloves, minced 2 bay leaves 1 onion, finely chopped 1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped 1 potato, peeled and small diced 2 celery sticks, finely chopped 8 cups (2 litres) water 1 tsp salt ½ tsp pepper Method: Slow cooker: Place peas in a slow cooker, then ham hock, veg, bay, salt, pepper and water. Cook 8 hours on low or 6 hours on high. Remove ham bone and bay leaves. Discard bone, fat and skin. Shred ham meat and return it to slow cooker or pot stir. Taste and add more salt if needed. Stove: Place all ingredients in a large heavy-bottomed pot on the stove. 2-3 hours on low on the stove, stirring occasionally Remove ham bone and bay leaves. Discard bone, fat and skin. Shred ham meat and return it to slow cooker or pot stir. Taste and add more salt if needed. Serve with crusty bread. PIMP MY RECIPE
I recently had a hankering for polenta chips, and was disappointed to find I was out of polenta. I did, however, have a lot of dried legumes, so I consulted Google to see what recipes I could find to scratch my itch. I quickly stumbled upon countless recipes for fries made from all kinds of ground, dried beans. The ones that caught my eye were the recipes for chickpea fries, because they were repeatedly described as having the delicious, creamy inside texture of a polenta chip, whilst the outside was crunchy perfection. Inspired by my recipe hunt, I made a batch, using dried chickpeas that I milled into flour. I think I have tinnitus as a result, so I created a simplified, quieter version, using besan flour. The end result was chip perfection. Crunchy, hot, salty snack heaven!  Serves 4 as a snack
(Note: The mixture needs some time to set in the fridge before you cut it into batons. An hour is fine, or even up to 3 days.) Ingredients: 4 cups water 2 cups chickpea (besan) flour 2 tsp vegetable or chicken stock powder 1 tsp each salt and pepper 3 tbsp olive oil plus extra to cook 1-2 tsps za'atar Dip of choice (optional) Method: PART 1 - PREPARE THE MIXTURE Grease a baking pan and put it aside. Bring the water to the boil in a pot or large saucepan, then reduce the heat to a simmer and gradually add the flour and whisk it into the water. Then whisk in stock, salt and pepper. Continue whisking for approx 8 minutes, until the mixture is thick and velvety. Stir in the olive oil. (Don't worry if there are a couple of lumps, it won't affect the final result at all.) Pour the chickpea mixture into the greased baking sheet and spread out into an even layer. Once it has cooled slightly, cover it well and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight. PART 2: MAKE THE FRIES Pre-heat your oven to 210°C (190°C fan forced). Line a large baking tray with baking paper or silicon baking sheet. Slice the now firm mixture into batons, about the size of a thick potato chip. Line them up on the baking sheet, and brush generously with olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes*, then turn to the other side, brush again, and replace in the oven to bake for another 10 minutes. They should be golden and crunchy. Remove from the oven, salt generously and sprinkle za'atar over them. Serve with greek yoghurt, tahini, hummus or the dip of your choice. *For an even crunchier chickpea fry experience, try shallow frying instead of baking. They take about 5-7 minutes over a medium heat - remember to turn them halfway through. PIMP MY RECIPE Add some spices or herbs to the mixture, at the same step that you add the stock and seasoning to the mixture while it's simmering. For instance, a tablespoon of fresh herbs like finely chopped rosemary, oregano or parsley. Or a teaspoon of dried herbs. A teaspoon of dried spice blends like baharat or za'atar works beautifully. Ask Italians the correct way to cook bolognese, ragu, gnocchi or polenta and you'll get a different answer from all of them. And they're all correct! Ingredients and methods vary between regions, creating unique geographical and cultural signatures on the food. Pesto is no exception. Recently, a charming Sicilian customer was delighted with our vibrant and fresh Australian grown Pistachios, and told me about his family's pesto recipe. In the south, he said, it's common to have Pesto made from pistachios, basil, olive oil, mint and parmesan. He was insistent on 3 things: 1. Unlike the classic pine nut pesto that most of us are familiar with, which uses just a handful of nuts to a whole bunch of basil. The pistachio version should be all about the pistachios, with the rest of the ingredients playing second fiddle. The mixture should be ⅔ pistachios. 2. Don't grind it finely. You should be able to see some pistachio pieces at the end. 3. "No garlic!" Here is my attempt at his beloved Pistachio Pesto. It was absolutely delicious. Hope you all enjoy it!  Pasta alla Trapanese, aka Pistachio Pesto
Serves 4 Ingredients 400 g pasta of choice 200g raw pistachios 50 ml extra virgin olive oil Juice of 1 lemon 40 g Parmesan or Pecorino grated salt for pasta and to season pepper to season ½ bunch basil, leaves only Handful mint leaves Method Put a large pot of water onto a boil for the pasta. Salt generously. "Pasta water should taste like the sea". Put the pistachios in a blender or food processor, add the grated cheese, lemon juice, herbs and half of the olive oil. As you start to blend/pulse add the rest of the olive oil until you get a dense pesto. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook the pasta al dente. Save a cup of the pasta cooking water and drain the pasta and return it to the pan. Add some of the pasta cooking water to the pesto to make it a little more liquidy and creamier. This step is crucial. It really elevates the pesto to something special. Then add the pistachio pesto to the pasta and mix together well. Serve immediately with extra grated cheese as required. PIMP MY RECIPE *Fried breadcrumbs are a fabulous addition. Tear 2-3 slices of stale bread into pieces and blitz briefly in the food processor until you have coarse crumbs. Then pan fry them gently in a low to medium pan with a splash of olive oil until just crunchy. Use as garnish before serving. *If pesto without garlic just feels wrong to you, please add a clove. I recommend sautéing it low and slow first to mellow the flavour. *Mr Sicilian says that almonds are often used in addition to or in place of pistachios. Roasted gives a better texture *I love hazelnut pesto. It brings a really unique, modern flavour to the classic simplicity of pesto. Use raw or roasted hazelnuts. No need to remove skin, as it's a rustic dish. |
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