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Pan-fried Halloumi with Gooseberries and Mint

Monday, July 27, 2020

Perfect for nibbling, or as a starter with a few drizzles of sweet tangy raspberry balsamic glaze and quality olive oil, these pan-fried Halloumi cheese are crisp, sticky, chewy and totally delicious. It is best served warm and you can complement it with different kinds of seasonal fruit, fresh mint or oregano leaves. Once it cools down, halloumi will get rubbery again. It can be reheated slightly, but the taste and texture won't be the same.
Tangy and salty with squeaky spongy texture, Halloumi (or Haloumi) is a semihard, unripened, and brined cheese traditionally made with goat's and/or sheep's milk. It's most used as a grilling/frying cheese because it maintains its shape when heated. It can be found in most supermarkets or specialty stores. I bought mine in ALDI.

250 g Halloumi, cut into 1cm-thick slices
Gooseberries or cherries, pitted
Fresh mint leaves
Extra virgin olive oil
Raspberry balsamic glaze
Freshly milled pepper

Heat a non-stick grill pan or frying pan over medium-high heat. Brush halloumi slices lightly with olive oil, and a squeeze of lemon juice too if you like. Cook halloumi for 1-2 minutes. When it starts to brown and crisp up turn the slices over and cook on the other side for another minute or two.
Arrange halloumi on a plate with the gooseberries or cherries and mint. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and balsamic glaze and season with freshly milled pepper.

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Cookie Butter Raisin Loaf

Friday, July 24, 2020

This sweet yeast bread roll is flavourful, super moist, and so delicious. The cookie butter raisin filling give the bread a decadent depth of flavour and taste.There are many different types of cookie butters. The one I am using for this recipe has a mix of holiday spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger) and tastes just like speculoos cookie spread. I use smooth one, but crunchy would work too!

20 g Fresh yeast, crumbled
50 g Coconut sugar
250 ml Full fat milk, luke warm
500 g Plain flour (German #550)
1/2 tsp Black salt (or regular)
80 g Beef dripping (or butter, softened)
2 Eggs, medium, room-temperature
125 g Raisins
150 g Cookie butter

Crumble the fresh yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer fixed with a dough hook. Add in coconut sugar and lukewarm milk. Stir together and set aside for 5 minutes.
Add in flour, salt, beef dripping or butter, and one egg. Mix for 5 minutes until the dough is elastic and smooth. Add in raisins and knead briefly.
Place dough in a large bowl and loosely cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel. Set aside in a warm, draught-free place for 1 hour or until dough doubles in size.
Grease and line a 30cm loaf pan with parchment paper.
Gently punch dough down. Knead until smooth. Roll dough into a 24cm x 30cm rectangle. Spread the cookie butter over dough. Starting from the short end closest to you, roll up like a Swiss roll. Place in the prepared pan.
Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place for 30 to 40 minutes or until dough has almost doubled in size. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 200C/400F.
Use a knife to score the loaf and brush the top with egg. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Turn bread, top side up, onto a wire rack to cool. Serve at room temperature.

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Lollo Bianco Salad with smoked Wild Salmon and Berries

Monday, July 20, 2020

Want a quick and easy meal option that’s light, nutritious but also flavourful and tasty? Try this colourful and deliciously healthy low-cal, low-carb, gluten-free salad that you can throw together in just 5 minutes, is loaded with smoked wild salmon– an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids and sweet juicy summer berries. For the extra crunchiness, I have added some sesame coated peanuts, but it's totally optional and you can certainly use other nuts or seeds.

1/2 head Lollo bianco lettuce
50 g Mushrooms, sliced
150 g Smoked salmon
125 g Raspberries
125 g Blueberries
1 Organic lemon, cut into wedges
50 g Sesame coated peanuts, optional
4 tbsp Avocado oil (or olive oil)
2 tbsp Apple cider vinegar
Salt and pepper
Crème fraîche, optional
Fresh herbs (chives, parsley)

Rinse, clean and dry lollo bianco or your choice of leaf lettuce thoroughly.
Place lettuce, sliced mushrooms, smoked salmon and berries in a large serving bowl. Top with lemon wedges and sesame coated peanuts if using.
Drizzle the sald with avocado oil and apple cider vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. ( You can also make a vinaigrette by whisking acv and oil together in a jug. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over the sald. ) Garnish the salmon with crème fraîche and fresh herbs. Toss gently to combine. Serve immediately.

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Chilled Cucumber Soup with Prawns and Dill

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Cool and refreshing cucumber soup with succulent prawns is just perfect for the summer months! Probiotics in both kefir and yoghurt can help maintain regular bowel movements, especially the kefir is a powerhouse of good bacteria for your gut, and support the immune system. The addition of fresh dill also helps stimulate digestion if you struggle with bloating.


2 Lebanese cucumbers, deseeded and grated 1 tbsp Chopped dill fronds 250 g Greek yoghurt 200 g Kefir Sea salt Fresh milled white pepper 2 tbsp Freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 slice Sandwich bread 1 tbsp Butter 1 clove Garlic, minced 100 g Prawns, cooked and peeled, leaving tails intact

Wash the small Lebanese cucumbers well. Dry and remove the seeds. Finely grate the cucumber using a box grater. You can also cut them into the very small dices.
Wash, dry and finely chop the dill. Mix the Greek yoghurt and kefir in a large bowl. Stir in grated cucumber and chopped dill. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Divide the soup in 2 soup bowls.
Cut the slice of bread into cubes. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-heat. Stir in minced garlic and bread cubes until crusty and golden. Add in prawns and cook briefly.
Top the soup with crusty crountons and prawns. Garnish with more dill fronds if desired.

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Stirfried Lamb Sweetbreads with Garlic and Rosemary

Friday, July 10, 2020

Sweetbreads are the pancreas and thymus glands of veal, lamb and pork. The thymus gland has an elongated shape, while the pancreas is larger and has an oval shape. Both of them are velvety creamy, tender and moist. And unlike many other organ meats, like kidneys or liver, sweetbreads have a rather mild flavour. Traditionally, they are given a seasoned flour coating and fried until golden and crisp. For me, that's overkilling the delicate flavour of sweetbread. So I have opted to quick stirfry them instead. They taste the tenderest and best when they just start to colour all over, about 5 minutes.
Before cooking, it's advisable to soak them in water, or milk in advance to remove impurities, and enable the sinew and membranes to be removed easily. You should also change the water a couple times. To further remove impurities from sweetbreads, you might also want to blanch them shortly and shock in ice water before cooking. This time I skipped the step and didn't taste the difference.

500 g Lamb sweetbreads
1 sprig Fresh rosemary, chopped
1 clove, Garlic, minced
3-4 tbsp Tallow or ghee or olive oil
1 tbsp Sherry vinegar
Hawaiian black lava sea salt
Pink peppercorns, for garnishing
A handful of arugula

Place the lamb sweetbreads in a bowl and cover with cold water. Drain the water and repeat one more time, then fill the bowl again with fresh water, leaving the sweetbreads to soak for an hour, then drain well.
Finely chop rosemary and garlic. Set aside.
Add the tallow to a pan, place over a moderate heat and add the chopped rosemary and garlic. Cook gently for 2 minutes until softened and aromatic. Add the sweetbreads and cook until they just start to colour all over, about 5 minutes. If you prefer them more caramelized and crisp, then continue to cook for a few more minutes.
Once the sweetbreads are cooked to your liking, deglaze the pan with sherry vinegar and season well with black lava salt.
To serve, arrange a bed of arugula salad on the plate. Top with the lamb sweetbreads, then crush some pink peppercorns over. Drizzle some pan sauce over.