Roasted Purple Potato Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
Friday, January 25, 2013A savoury blend of rosemary roasted purple potatoes, cauliflower, carrot, tossed with arugula leaves and a simple red wine vinaigrette. It's easy to make and and you can adjust ingredients to suit your own personal taste. I love starchy, earthy and nutty purple potatoes in this salad, but if you can’t find them, just use a mixture of new potatoes instead.
Salad | Red Wine Vinaigrette |
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- Mix 4 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary. Add potatoes, cauliflower florets and carrots and toss. Spread out onto a baking sheet and bake for 50 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender and browned. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool to the room temperature.
- In a blender, mix the red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic cloves, Dijon mustard, paprika powder, honey, salt and pepper. With the machine running, gradually blend in the oil.
- Toss the baked purple potatoes and vegetables with arugula. Add 1/2 cup of the dressing and toss to coat, adding more if necessary. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve immediately.
Braided Onion Bread with White Wine and Smoked Bacon
Monday, January 21, 2013This is a rustic braided yeast bread (part levain, part commercial yeast) that is filled with a mix of caramelized onions and smoked bacon deglazed with white wine. It's hearty, packed with flavour, and quite a treat for onion lovers. If you're a vegetarian, leave out the smoked bacon, it tastes different though equally delicious served with a salad or soup. I have cut the braided loaf into two and baked them in loaf pans, but you can just bake the whole braided loaf on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Braided Onion Bread with White Wine and Smoked Bacon
adapted from Brot-Bernd Armbrust©angiesrecipes
Filling | Dough |
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- Peel and cut the onions into rings. Cut the smoked bacon into small cubes. Heat the oil in a skillet and cook onion rings over medium heat until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add in diced smoked bacon and white wine. Cook the mixture until the liquid has almost evaporated. Leave it overnight in the fridge.
- Dissolve yeast with warm water in the bowl of your stand mixer, then stir in sourdough starter and white wine. Add in flours and salt. Mix for 4 minutes at slow speed, then increase the speed and mix 4 more minutes. Shape into a longish dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Prepare two loaf pans and line with baking papers.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface roll it out to a 50x35-cm rectangle. Spread the onion mixture lengthwise over 2/3 of the dough. Fold the dough into a three-layer, beginning at the un-filled third. Cut into 3 strips and braid. Slice the braided loaf from the center into half. Pinch ends to seal and tuck under. Place each into a loaf pan. Cover and let rise for 30-45 minutes at room temperature.
- Fill a roasting pan with water and place it at the bottom of the oven. Preheat the oven to 230C/450F. Dust the loaves with a little bit flour. Bake the loaves in the center of the hot oven for 35-40 minutes. Remove the roasting pan with water after 15 minutes.
Belgian Endive and Mandarin Orange Salad
Wednesday, January 16, 2013Simple and delicious, this healthy salad features earthy, tangy, and crisp Belgian endives and sour-sweet and full-flavoured mandarins. A small handful of chopped arugula and homemade bread croutons are the perfect accompaniment for adding some extra flavour and crunch to this delightful winter salad, then toss everything with a white wine vinaigrette.
Salad | Dressing |
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- Cut stem end from Belgian endives. Separate into individual leaves. Peel the mandarins and then slice them crosswise.
- Place all the dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake thoroughly until well blended.
- Arrange Belgian endive leaves on two plates and top them with the sliced mandarins. Sprinkle chopped arugula leaves and croutons on top and drizzle the dressing over the salad before serving.
Beluga Lentil Bread with Pickled Bell Pepper
Friday, January 11, 2013This heart healthy bread recipe, adapted from Brot-Bernd Armbrust
©angiesrecipes via Küchengötter, creates one really great tasting, rustic loaf. The black lentils pack extra fiber and protein to this moist and dense bread. The bread tastes particularly great topped with thin cold cut.
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- Rinse and dry half of the sage. Pluck and finely cut the sage leaves. Place beluga lentils, balsamico vinegar, sugar, water and brine in a saucepan. Bring it to a boil, about 15-20 minutes. Turn it off and leave it for 8 hours or overnight until the lentils have absorbed most of the liquid.
- Diced pickled bell peppers. Dissolve the fresh yeast with lukewarm water in the mixing bowl of your stand mixer. Stir in rye sourdough starter. Add in bread and rye flours, then the salt. Mix at slow speed for 4 minutes, then increase the speed and knead for a 4 further minutes.
- Add in cooked lentils together with liquid and chopped pickled bell peppers. Mix at slow speed until well distributed. Cover the dough and leave it at the room temperature for 20 minutes.
- Grease a 35-cm loaf pan or line with baking paper. Wash and dry the rest of sage. Scrape the dough into the prepared pan. Top with sage leaves and brush them with the water, so they don’t get burned too quickly. Cover and rest for another 20 minutes.
- Fill a roasting pan with some water and place it at the bottom of the oven. Preheat the oven to 250C/480F. Once the oven has reached the desired temperature, remove the roasting pan with water and place the bread on the middle rack. Lower the temperature to 210C/410C. Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes. Remove and brush the bread with olive oil while it is still hot.
Beluga Black Lentil Salad with Tofu
Tuesday, January 08, 2013Beluga lentils are tiny black variety with nutty, earthy flavour, named after the caviar they resemble. This beluga lentil salad is really simple, satisfying and can be served on its own or as a side dish with your choice of meat. It can also be served on lettuce leaves.
Salad | Dressing |
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- In a medium saucepan, combine the black lentils with the smashed garlic, bay leaf and water and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat until the lentils are just tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the lentils and discard the garlic and bay leaf. Set aside to cool.
- Cut the tofu into 2-inch slices. Season with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Pan-fry tofu, 4-5 minutes per side, until golden brown and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper. Whisk all the dressing ingredients until well blended.
- Add the black lentils, julienned parsley root, carrot, sliced onion, garlic sprout and tofu into a large bowl, then pour on the dressing and toss to mix.
Red Wine braised Cabbage with Caramelized Chestnuts
Friday, January 04, 2013This red wine braised cabbage makes a great side dish to roasted poultry, pork or game meats, but you can enjoy it with bulgur or wild rice and caramelized chestnuts for a hearty and healthy meal. Goose fat can be substituted with butter and red wine with grape juice instead.
Red Wine braised Cabbage with Caramelized Chestnuts
adapted from Küchen Göetter
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- Remove any wilted leaves on the outside of the cabbage. Cut the cabbage vertically into 4 parts.Remove the core and cut the cabbage into 5mm slices. Peel and dice the onion. Peel, core and dice the apple.
- Melt the goose fat in a large pan over medium heat. Add in onion and stir until translucent. Add in red cabbage and apple. Cook and stir briefly, then add in 4 tablespoons of red wine vinegar and red wine. Cover and cook for 40-50 minutes until almost all the liquid has evaporated. Taste and season with the remaining vinegar, salt and pepper.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of sugar in a small pan over medium heat until lightly brown and caramelized. Remove the pan from the heat and add in butter and chestnuts. Cook over the low heat and gently stir until chestnuts are well coated with caramel. Fold the caramelized chestnuts into red cabbage.
Green Beans with Cranberry Pepita Pesto
Tuesday, January 01, 2013Fresh vibrant green beans are a versatile vegetable. They are crunchy, nutritious and can be very tasty too. These delicious, heart-healthy green beans are first blanched in salted water until crispy and tender, then jazzed up with a pesto that’s made with pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries.
Happy New Year! May your new year be blessed with peace, love and joy. I wish EVERYONE a safe and joyful 2013! If you make New Year's resolutions (I don't any more), stay firm, and don't give up.
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- Place the pepita, cranberries, garlic cloves, garlic sprouts and lemon juice into a food processor and process until very finely chopped. While the food processor is running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
- Blanch green beans in a large pot of well salted boiling water until bright green in colour and tender crisp, roughly 8 minutes. Drain and place in a bowl of cold water to stop from cooking. Arrange the green beans on a serving plate and spoon the pesto over.
Weizenbrötchen - German Hard Rolls with Poolish
Friday, December 28, 2012These small crisp bread rolls with a crunchy crust and a soft tender crumb, also known as Weizenbrötchen, or Semmel in German, are the classic German hard rolls. They are eaten frequently for breakfast, or with cold cuts as lunch in Germany. An overnight poolish starter lends a nuttier flavour to bread and the shiny brown crisp crust brought about by the steam created by placing a pot of hot water at the bottom of your oven. You can always freeze them and re-crisp in a 150C/300F oven for 10-12 minutes.
Weizenbrötchen - German Hard Rolls with Poolish
adapted from Plötz BlogPoolish | Dough |
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- Combine together the poolish ingredients in a mixing bowl. Leave it, covered, at room temperature for 16-20 hours.
- Mix the starter, bread flour, water and fresh yeast at low speed for 3 minutes, then increase the speed and mix for 5 more minutes. Add in salt, sugar, and olive oil and continue to knead for another 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and form into a round ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel. Set aside for an hour. Stretch and fold the dough after 30 minutes. Knead the dough thoroughly and divide it into 5 large or 8 small portions. Shape each portion into an oval and place them on the parchment paper lined baking tray. Cover and prove for an hour.
- Place a roasting tray at the bottom of the oven. Preheat the oven to 230C/450F. Score the rolls and place in the hot oven. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the roasting tray. Bake 20-25 minutes until they are nicely golden brown and crisp.