California breakfast sushi roll

January 27, 2013September 9, 2022 Belinda

This tickled me, as it’s a breakfast sushi roll and really works. It’s simple and a bit different.

Yields 2 servings

4 eggs, divided
6 tbsp milk, divided
4 tbsp grated Jack cheese, divided
cooking spray
2 flour tortillas
4 strips crisp bacon
1/2 large avocado, sliced
1/2 large tomato, sliced

For the spicy sour cream

2 tbsp sour cream
1 tbsp hot sauce
1 tsp milk

Coat a medium skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat.
In a small bowl, whisk 2 eggs and 3 tbsp milk until incorporated. Pour into the hot skillet.
Sprinkle with 2 tbsp grated cheese and cook without stirring for 3 to 5 minutes until the top is no longer wet. You may need to turn the heat down so the bottom doesn’t burn.

Place the tortilla over the egg and gently flip them out onto a cutting board.
Place 2 strips of bacon on the bottom 1/4 of the tortilla (closest to you)
Top with half of the sliced avocado and tomato. Roll up as tightly and gently as you can.
Allow to rest for a minute then slice with a sharp knife into sushi rolls.
Repeat the process with the remaining eggs, cheese etc.

In a small bowl mix together the sour cream, hot sauce and milk. Drizzle over the sushi rolls and serve immediately

Asian flavors · Curry · Gluten Free · Vegan · Vegetable-related · Whole30 compliant

Butternut squash and spinach curry

January 12, 2013September 13, 2018 Belinda

Serves about 4

2 tbsp vegetable oil or canola oil
1/4 tsp black mustard seeds (actually they look brown!)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
6 curry leaves,optional
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
5 tbsp good curry powder
4 cups peeled and cubed (1 1/2 inch cubes) butternut squash
2 cups of water, vegetable broth or chicken broth
1 cup coconut milk
3 cups tightly packed baby spinach

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the mustard seeds if using. When they start to pop, add the cumin seeds and curry leaves and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds

Add the onions and cook till they are light brown, then throw in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or till fragrant

Sprinkle 4 tbsp curry powder, stir then add the peeled and cubed squash and salt.

Pour in 2 cups of water or stock and bring to the boil. Then reduce the heat to a lively simmer, cover the pot and let the squash cook till it is fork tender, about 20 minutes.
If the water/stock is drying up before the pumpkin is cooked, add more. If there is too much liquid, boil it until it reduces down.

When the squash is cooked, add the coconut milk and remaining 1 tbsp curry powder. Stir and bring back to the boil.

When the curry boils, add the spinach and cook just till the spinach wilts, about 1 minutes.
Serve hot with rice, bread, roti or quinoa.

Optional – For added sweetness, garnish the curry with some dried cranberries.

Asian flavors · Gluten Free · Poultry

Sticky Chinese chicken

January 12, 2013February 7, 2016 Belinda

Delicious and simple!

1 x 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped small
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1/4 tsp five-spice powder
3 whole star anise
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup chicken stock
1/3 cup oyster sauce
1 whole chicken cut into pieces, or 3lbs of chicken pieces
steamed rice, to serve

Preheat the oven to 400F
Place the ginger, garlic, five spice powder, star anise, sugar, soy sauce, stock and oyster sauce in a small bowl and whisk until well combined.
Place the chicken pieces in an oven proof dish and pour the ginger mixture over the chicken, coating the pieces.
Cover with a tight fitting lid or foil and marinate in the fridge for 4 hours, turning the chicken occasionally.
Bring back to room temp and put in the oven and cook for about 1 hour or until tender. You can leave the lid or foil off in the last 30 mins to get a good bronzing of the chicken.

Serves 6

Asian flavors · Do-ahead · Gluten Free · Poultry

Glazed orange-hoisin chicken

December 16, 2012November 13, 2022 Belinda

This is one of our family favorites. It’s also very popular with children because of the sweetness and stickiness the orange marmalade creates, but the hoisin and fresh ginger give it a sophistication.

It’s great straight out of the oven, at room temp and even cold the next day. Terrific for picnics too.

Serves 4 but can easily be doubled

Marinade

3 tbsp hoisin sauce (Available in the Asian food aisles)
1 tsp chili paste/sauce with garlic (If you can only get chili paste, that’s fine too, but add a couple of cloves of minced garlic)
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dark or toasted sesame oil
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
1/3 cup Dundee-orange marmalade

3 to 4lbs chicken quarters

Garnish
2 tbsp finely chopped scallions
orange slices

1/ Combine all the marinade ingredients except for the marmalade in a large bowl. Add the marmalade and whisk the marinade well. Taste for seasoning.

2/ Add the chicken quarters to the marinade and coat all the pieces evenly. Cover and marinade the chicken for 30 minutes to 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator, turning the pieces once or twice.

3/ Preheat the oven to 375F. Place the chicken quarters skin side up in a large shallow roasting pan and roast for 50 to 55 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown. Baste with the juices once or twice while it is roasting. After this, turn the oven to 350F and loosely cover the roasting pan with foil, roasting at for another 30 min. Turn the oven off and leave in there for another 20-30 mins.
The meat should be falling off the bones and very moist.

4/ To serve, remove the chicken from the pan and degrease the drippings. Arrange the chicken on a large serving platter, spoon some sauce over it, and garnish with scallions and orange slices.
Serve immediately.

Advance preparation

This recipe can be made 1 day ahead, refrigerated and served chilled or prepare it up to 2 hours ahead through step 2 and refrigerate.

Asian flavors · Gluten Free · Salad · Vegan · Vegetable-related

Szechwan Slaw (CleanCuisine)

December 16, 2012September 9, 2022 Belinda

I intend to make this as a side on Christmas Eve alongside the crown roast of pork This is delicious and tangy with the freshly grated ginger giving it a real fresh and clean taste. It’s also great with a piece of broiled salmon as a very low fat meal

Serves 8

The Szechwan Dressing

1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp crushed red chile flakes
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
salt to taste

The salad

3 cups thinly sliced red cabbage
3 cups thinly sliced green cabbage
1 large red pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
4 scallions, thinly sliced diagonally
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
1/4 lb snow peas, sliced thinly and diagonally
1/8 cup black sesame seeds
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds

To prepare the dressing

In a bowl combine the vinegar, canola, sugar, ginger, red chile flakes, cilantro and salt. Set aside

To prepare the salad

Toast the almonds until golden brown and they start to smell great! You can use a toaster oven or regular oven. It should take about 7 minutes at 350F. Set aside to cool or do in advance.

Combine the red and green cabbages, red pepper, scallions, carrot, snow peas and sesame seeds.

Fifteen minutes before serving time, toss the cabbage mixture with the dressing, as this allows the flavors to meld while keeping the crisp vegetables intact.

Asian flavors · Curry · Do-ahead · Gluten Free · Soup

Curried lentil soup with yoghurt and cilantro

December 9, 2012September 9, 2022 Belinda

The perfect weather for warming, filling soup in front of the fire!

serves 4 220 cals per person

1 tbsp canola oil
1 cup chopped onion (you can use the frozen pre-chopped onions too)
1 tbsp minced fresh garlic
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1&1/2 tbsp curry powder
1/8 tsp ground red pepper (Cayenne pepper)
3 cups chicken broth
1&1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1lb package of vacuum packed steamed lentils (most markets sell these now)
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1/3 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/3 cup 2% reduced-fat Greek yoghurt

Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat.
Add the oil, swirl to coat and add the onion. Saute the onion for about 5 mins, add the garlic and ginger and saute for about 1 minute.

Add the curry powder and red pepper cooking for another 30 seconds stirring constantly.

Add the chicken broth, vinegar and lentils. Increase the heat to high and bring to the boil
Reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Place half the lentil mixture in a blender. Remove the center piece of the blender, secure the lid on the blender and place a clean towel over the opening on the lid. Blend until smooth. This prevents the lid exploding off the top due to the increased build-up of steam in the blender.

Add the blended mixture, spinach, salt and pepper back to the original pan of soup and stir until the spinach wilts.

Stir in 2 tbsp of chopped cilantro and serve. Top each serving with a dollop of Greek yoghurt and sprinkled cilantro.

Asian flavors · Fish · Pasta

Spaghetti with Singapore prawns sauce

December 9, 2012March 1, 2022 Belinda

This is fairly spicy, depending on how much Thai curry paste you put in.
I love it with spaghetti. This would use 1lb cooked spaghetti for 4 people.

1&1/2lbs raw, deveined prawns, (not too large)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
4 oz mushrooms, sliced,
4 tbsp chopped green onions
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 heaped tsp grated fresh ginger
1&1/2 tbsp hoisin sauce
1&1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp red Thai curry paste
pinch of five spice powder
10 fl oz coconut milk
salt and pepper

Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or frying pan, put in the mushrooms, green onions, garlic and ginger for a couple of minutes.

Add the hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, red curry paste and five spice powder and stir well.

The add the coconut milk, a little more salt and pepper and the prawns.

Simmer gently for a few minutes until the prawns have turned pink and serve on a bed of spaghetti, rice or rice noodles.

This sauce can be doubled or trebled, but watch the red Thai curry paste amount. You shouldn’t double that necessarily!

Asian flavors · Fish · Gluten Free

Broiled salmon with cucumber raita

September 25, 2012February 8, 2016 Belinda

Beautiful, light, unusual and easy!

Serves 4

2 tsp curry powder
4 tsp whole grain mustard
4 salmon fillets about 6 oz each, skinned (preferably wild)
1 large English cucumber. peeled, seeded and diced small
1 cup red onion, diced the same size as the cucumber (small)
1/2 cup plain thick yoghurt. (Not low fat)
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)
3 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1 heaped tsp ground cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Coat the salmon fillets in the mustard and sprinkle on 1 tsp of the curry powder then season with salt and pepper. Set aside until the raita is made.

Diced cucumber

In a bowl, stir together the remaining tsp of curry powder, cumin,cucumber, red onion, yoghurt, cilantro and mint. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover and refrigerate until serving. (About 1 hour so the flavors can blend)

Cucumber raita

Put the salmon fillets under a broiler and broil until just done but don’t over cook.
Serve with the raita either over the salmon or under the salmon

NB You can also poach the salmon then chill it, making the dish a cold one, but I like the salmon hot.

Asian flavors · Gluten Free · Salad · Whole30 compliant

Asian avocado salad

September 23, 2012January 7, 2017 Belinda

This is lovely and a bit different with the Asian dressing complementing the avocado beautifully.
A simple but very effective starter

Serves 4

2 ripe Haas avocados
mixed greens

Dressing

1 tbsp white sesame seeds
2 tbsp safflower oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp Chinese pepper mix (Equal amounts of whole black, white and Szechuan peppers, toasted then ground in a spice mill. You will be able to keep this for quite a while)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp finely minced fresh ginger

Dressing
Toast the sesame seeds in a small ungreased skillet set over a high heat until they are light golden.
Combine the sesame seeds with the remaining ingredients in a jar and shake well.

Cut the avocados in half, seed and thinly slice.
Place some mixed leaves on 4 salad plates. Fan an avocado half across each bed of greens.
Shake the dressing in the jar and then drizzle it over the avocado.
Serve at once