02/2019

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Middle Eastern-style Brussels Sprout Salad

Sunday, February 24, 2019

Baharat, Arabic for 'spice', is an aromatic spice blend used in Middle Eastern cuisine. What spices are included in the blend vary geographically, but you can generally expect black pepper, coriander, paprika, cardamom, nutmeg, cumin, cloves, and cinnamon. It is used as the seasoning for beef, lamb, chicken, seafood, and vegetables as well a dry rub or marinade.

300 g Brussels sprouts, halved
Extra-virgin olive oil to drizzle
125 g Full-fat Greek yogurt
Zest and juice ½ lemon
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp Fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbsp Pine nuts, toasted lightly in a frying pan with a little oil
Baharat to sprinkle

Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil, then add the sprouts and cook for 4-5 minutes – they should still be vibrant green and have some crunch. Drain, rinse under cold running water, then dry briefly with sheets of kitchen paper and transfer to a serving dish. Season lightly with salt and pepper and toss with a good drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the Greek yogurt, lemon zest and juice, garlic, mustard and chopped. Season to taste, then toss through the sprouts. Sprinkle over the pine nuts, the baharat and extra parsley to serve.

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Poppy Date Loaf

Sunday, February 17, 2019

A soft yeast spelt bread wrapped around a poppy seed filling sweetened with dates and coconut syrup. This is the type of bread we enjoy for breakfast, especially on holidays and weekends. If you can't find ground poppy at your local stores, just grind the poppy seeds in a coffee or spice grinder until powdery.

Dough	Poppy Date Filling
380 g Spelt flour 15 g Fresh yeast 125 ml Buttermilk, room-temperature 40 g Coconut sugar 75 g Butter, softened in pieces 1 Egg, medium Salt	80 g Dates, chopped 3 tbsp Rum / or apple juice 200 g Coconut cream 75 g Coconut syrup or honey 200 g Poppy seeds, ground 1 tsp Organic lemon zest 1 Egg, medium

For the dough, place spelt flour in the bowl of your mixer. Make a well in the center and crumble in fresh yeast. Add in 3 tbsps of buttermilk, 1 tsp of coconut sugar and stir in some flour from the sides. Cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
Now add in the rest of buttermilk, coconut sugar, softened butter, egg and a large pinch of salt. Stir first on slow speed for a couple of minutes until the dough roughly comes together. Increase the speed and knead until the dough forms a smooth, tacky ball that clears sides of bowl. Cover the dough with a plastic wrap or a damp tea towel and leave to rise in a warm place for 45-60 minutes until doubled in volume.
While the dough proofs, prepare the filling. Soften the chopped dates in rum or apple juice. In a small saucepan, add in coconut cream and coconut syrup. Bring to a simmer. Add in ground poppy seeds. Cook and stir over the medium heat until thickened. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature. Add in lemon zest, egg and soaked dates.
Preheat the oven to 190C/375F. Grease and line the base and sides of a 32cm loaf pan with baking paper.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and punch down. Roll the dough into a 35cm x 45cm rectangle. Spread the poppy date filling over. Roll up each loosely from the long end to form a log. Use a sharp knife to cut the log lengthwise in half and weave the two pieces together to form a twist.
Gently transfer to the prepared pan
©angiesrecipes. Cover with a clean tea towel and stand in a warm place for a further 10 minutes until slightly risen. Brush the top with the egg glaze, then bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack.

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Vegan, Gluten Free Spinach Chickpea Crepes

Saturday, February 09, 2019

Spinach Chickpea crepes are a great vegan and gluten-free alternative to classic crepes and they’re so GOOD filled with heaps of shredded veggies and mushroom-pâté inspired by Tin and Thyme. You can serve this as an appetizer or with extra portion of salad or soup as a light lunch.

Crepes	To Serve
120 g Chickpea flour 60 g Potato starch 60 g Spinach leaves 1/2 tsp Garlic salt 270 ml Water	Mushroom pâté (recipe here by Tin and Thyme) Shredded black radish Shredded Carrot Shredded bell pepper

Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Use an immersion blender to process everything until you have a smooth batter. Cover with plastic wrap. Set aside at room temperature for 30 mins to rest.
Heat a 22-cm non-stick skillet over medium flame. Brush the skillet with a bit of coconut oil. Pour about 1/3 cup of the batter into the hot skillet while quickly tilting the skillet in a circular motion to swirl batter to evenly cover the base.
Cook for 1- 2 minutes on medium heat, or until the crepe is dry on the surface and crisp around the edges. Flip the crepe and cook on the other side for a further 1 minute. Transfer to a plate. Cover loosely with foil to prevent the crepe drying out. Repeat with the remaining batter to make 8 crepes.
To serve, spread some mushroom pâté over the crepe, and top with shredded vegetables. Roll up firmly to enclose filling and enjoy!

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Crisp Roasted Duck

Sunday, February 03, 2019

A whole roasted duck doesn't have to be fussy. With just a few hours' roasting and hardly any work at all, you can have a juicy bird with crisp skin. Serve it with pan juice roasted Brussels sprouts or some seasonal salad for a festive occasion or Sunday dinner.

The Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival officially begins on February 5th, 2019 and I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family peace, joy and love this holiday!

	Gravy
1 x 2-2.2 kg Duck Sea salt Freshly milled peppers 1 bunch Thyme 1 Organic lemon, quartered 750 g Brussels sprouts, trimmed, washed and dried	2 tbsp Spelt flour 150 ml Chicken broth or water 50 ml Port or Marsala

Preheat oven to 220C/430F. Wash the duck inside and out with cold running water. Pat dry all over with paper towel.
Rub the duck all over with the sea salt and freshly milled pepper. Fill the duck cavity with thyme and quartered lemon. Prick skin all over with a sharp fork and tie legs together -- be sure to not pierce the meat itself, only the skin. This lets the fat render out and will help crisp the skin.
Place a wire rack in a roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with 1 cup of water. Place the duck on the wire rack, breast-side down. Roast in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
Lower the temperature to 190C/375F. Turn the duck breast-side up and fill the roasting pan with another cup of water. Continue cooking for a further 60-70 minutes until golden brown and crisp.
Brush the duck occasionally with dripping from the roasting pan. 20 minutes before the duck is done, add the Brussels sprouts into the roasting pan and toss with the duck dripping and cook until tender.
Remove duck and Brussels sprouts on a large serving plate. Cover with a tin foil to keep warm.
Scrape the duck fat and juice from the roasting pan and pour into a pan. Add in spelt flour and stir with a wooden spoon until slightly thickened. Add in chicken broth and port. Bring the gravy to the boil and simmer gently for half an hour, stirring occasionally.
Shred or carve up the duck, and serve with roasted Brussels sprouts and gravy.