Cantaloupe Olive Salad with Mint Lime Dressing
Thursday, August 13, 2020A wonderful combination of fruit and lettuce with a mint lime dressing. This salad makes an ideal accompaniment to cold or smoked meats and poultry. As well as being fresh, light and tasty, this salad is incredibly easy to make. Truly a refreshing summer delight! If you prefer, you can substitute honeydew or watermelon for cantaloupe.
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- Place all the ingredients for the dressing in a jar with lid. Shake until thoroughly mixed and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Use a melon baller to scoop balls from the cantaloupe. Peel the rest and cut into small cubes.
- Place cantaloupe and mixed olive in a bowl. Add in 2 tablespoons of mint lime dressing. Toss to combine.
- Cut the romaine lettuce heart into 4-6 wedges and arragne them on a serving platter. Place the melon and olive mixture in the center and between the wedges. Spoon some dressing over and serve immediately!
Watermelon Pizza with Berries, Greek Yoghurt and Rose Petals
Monday, August 10, 2020Watermelon Pizza is an easy dessert loaded with fresh summer berries, vanilla flavoured Greek yoghurt, rose petals and fresh herbs. It's easy and fun to make and the perfect treat for a hot summer day! I thought the pizza looks prettier topped with naturally colourful and beautiful summer berries, but you can change it up and use whatever fruit (mango, kiwi, strawberry, or currants) you have in your fridge. If you're lactose intolerant, coconut cream works as an excellent substitute for Greek yoghurt. Shave some chocolate over if you are a fan. Be creative and enjoy the summer!
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- In a small bowl, mix Greek yoghurt, maple syrup and vanilla together until combined.
- Divide the yoghurt mixture onto two slices of watermelon and top with berries, herbs, and rose petals. Cut each pizza into 6 or 8 slices. Serve immediately.
Galia Melon Red Currant Bowl
Thursday, August 06, 2020The Galia melon looks like a cantaloupe on the outside and a honeydew on the inside. They taste light, smooth and sweet. The Galia melon can be used in both sweet and savory dishes. Great in salads, breakfast, and main dishes. This fruit bowl is not only easy, but it's fun to put it together, too and perfect for breakfast, a snack or as a dessert.
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- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add in coconut flakes and shake in the skillet until lightly toasted and aromatic.
- Cut the melon into half. Use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. To make perfect melon balls, press down firmly so the melon baller digs into the flesh, then twist to make the ball.
- Carefully scrape the rest of the melon flesh with a spoon, being careful not to damage the shell. Blend the melon flesh, mascarpone and lime juice together until smooth using an immersion blender.
- Return the mixture into the prepared shells. Add in melon balls, red currants and sprinkle some toasted coconut flakes over. Garsnish with lemon thyme. Enjoy!
Lettuce Wedge Salad with Bacon and Sour Cream Dressing
Monday, August 03, 2020Lettuce wedge salad is one of the easiest salads to make! It’s crunchy, smoky, juicy and so delicious with a rich, tangy sour cream dressing. Serve it on its own or as a side with a grilled steak or chicken. Both bacon and the dressing can be prepared one day ahead. Iceberg lettuce can be substituted with romaine lettuce.
Sour Cream Dressing | Salad |
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- Whisk sour cream, mayonnaise, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, parsley, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl to combine. Dressing can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
- In a skillet cook the bacon bits until crisp or to your liking.
- Core and cut the head of lettuce into 4 equal wedges. Transfer each wedge of lettuce together with a couple of grape tomatoes if using onto serving plates. Spoon over some sour cream dressing and sprinkle with finely chopped chives or parsley, diced sweet pepper and cooked bacon bits.
Cucumber and Cilantro Salad with Ginger Garlic Dressing
Thursday, July 30, 2020Cool, refreshing and delicious...a little side salad with a lot of flavour is an excellent accompaniment to any grilled meat or seafood that your whole family will love.
We enjoy it year round but this it is especially good if you have a garden and are overrun with cucumbers or found a good deal at the farmer's market like I did. It's particularly healthy and you can enjoy as much as you wish.
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- Heat the peanut oil in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the ginger and garlic and cook, stirring until aromatic, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add the soya sauce, lemon juice and coconut sugar or honey and stir until the sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool. Arrange the cucumber, coriander and chilli on a serving platter. Drizzle with the dressing. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Enjoy!
Pan-fried Halloumi with Gooseberries and Mint
Monday, July 27, 2020Perfect 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.
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- 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.
Cookie Butter Raisin Loaf
Friday, July 24, 2020This 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!
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- 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.
Lollo Bianco Salad with smoked Wild Salmon and Berries
Monday, July 20, 2020Want 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.
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- 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.
Chilled Cucumber Soup with Prawns and Dill
Tuesday, July 14, 2020Cool 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.
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- 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.