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The things we humans obsess over (Part 2)

So I’ve done 22 days no alcohol now, and I’m feeling pretty good. Previously I’d done 5 weeks in 2013 and that was a monumental exercise in fabulousness. But with this new-ish clarity of thought comes the inevitable reflection on just how utterly obsessed we are with the ‘demon-drink’ …..and I’ve realised how much alcohol is a knee-jerk reaction in modern western society.

 

Had a bad day? A glass of wine will sort that.
Nailed that project at work? You deserve a drink!
Survived the working week with all your limbs intact? Time for a beverage!

 

It’s like drinking is so ingrained into what we do literally day to day that it takes a concerted effort to minimise the ingrained knee-jerk reaction to relax with a drink…..

Think about it:
Oh it’s a beautiful sunny summers night, I’d better make the most of this and go out and have a beer in the sun!
Oh it’s a rainy winters night, freezing out there! I should tuck up with a yummy glass of red wine in front of the fire…

It’s the elixr for the masses, comes in all shapes and sizes, flavours and strengths, colours and packages, it picks you up when you’re down, transforms your face to a smile from a frown, helps lubricate communication all over town, makes you think you can dance and ‘get down’ – it’s what?! ALCOHOL! Yay! *cue mexican wave*

Now I don’t propose to have all the answers to this (or anything for that matter) what I want you to do is simply stop and think for yourself.

To start asking yourself how you feel about drinking…. to see if you resonate with anything I’ve mentioned, and to see if you too could start to challenge the assumptions modern society has placed upon you about drinking. *glug glug*

Could you go a week without drinking? A month? What changes in your social habits would you need to make in order to do this? How would your friends and workmates react?

After almost 10 years in Recruitment (an industry body known for enjoying the ‘odd tipple‘ *cough*) I can hand on heart say that I still enjoy a deep spicy glass of Shiraz, and smooth and velvety Central Otago Pinot Noir, and love the giggly brain-fuzz and silliness from a ridiculously over-priced glass of Champagne…. but my attitude to drinking is slowly changing.

With glorified boozing in adverts tempting me… And bars full of laughing, smiling, beautiful people – waving about their bottles of beer and oh-so-tempting glasses of chilled Pinot Gris as I wander past …I almost feel like I’m ‘sticking it to the man’ some days…. so yeah, fight the power and whatnot, I’m off to pour myself a stiff tea.

 

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The things we humans obsess over (part 1)

Lounging around in bed this morning, putting off the inevitable part of the day where I get up and pretend to be a responsible adult, I found myself reading an article about the Oscars most important fashion moments (or some equally inane drivel) and promptly gave myself an internal donk on the head.

This was an article about image, style, impression, capturing a moment, icons, zeitgeist and the like all wrapped up in a piece of material draped around a body. Because that’s just it, isn’t it? It’s material? Didn’t we first decide to wrap ourselves in things because we don’t have fur? Wasn’t it so we didn’t freeze our nips off in the ice age? Or was it because of a gaping realisation that we were cruising around nekkid in a fabulous garden (and had been for ages, why didn’t someone say something??) and thought that a leaf would be an appropriate cover for the bits the god gave us?

So when did necessity (the mother of invention, and by that logic the father of pants) become such an obsession? It’s not ‘what you’re wearing’ but “who are you wearing dahhling?” and since when did we judge a persons worth on their ability to look good in a piece of fabric?

And why (this is the biggest issue of all really) do I own so many dresses, and yet constantly find myself looking for more?

Pants are overrated, but what’s so awful about the human body that we’re all more obsessed with covering it up, than embracing the glorious-ness of our own bits?

Why do we need to primp, preen, nip, tuck, starve, paint and hide ourselves…. why do we let that piece of material speak for us?

 

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Chickpea & Blue Cheese Summer Salad

Another quick & delish easy salad combo to share….

INGREDIENTS/ METHOD
300g reduced salt tinned chickpeas
Two large handfuls mix lettuce leaves
Circa 150g creamy blue cheese cut into squares
Handful fresh picked green beans cut roughly the size of your thumbnail
1 red capsicum, cut same size
Small 1/3 handful of pumpkin seeds (toast them in a pan for extra nutty-ness)

This is super-quick to throw together, and great with a small drizzle of balsamic vinegar… perfect for a filling healthy late summer lunch…

 

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Easy Homemade Bread

This is something I tend to do more in winter, but I was so inspired by the markets and their delish offerings yesterday, and it was a good warm day, perfect for raising dough….

The pic below is the black pepper, garlic and thyme focaccia I made yesterday, and it’s topped with fresh smoked mozzerella from the market (that stuff is amazing and almost deserves it’s own post, you can cook it like haloumi for goodness sake!)

Back to the bread…. making fresh bread is so freaking easy. Seriously. Once you do it for the first time you’ll be blown away by how simple and completely rewarding it can be to combine what is essentially four key ingredients…. (Flour, Active Dry Yeast, Water, Salt)

All bread recepies have slight variations, I love focaccia and it’s a great starter for your bread-making journey….

INGREDIENTS
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (NB: can sub wholemeal flour)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 pinch ground black pepper

METHOD
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, garlic powder, oregano, thyme, basil and black pepper. Mix in the vegetable oil and water.

When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Punch dough down; place on greased baking sheet. Pat into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle. Brush top with olive oil. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm.

 

Some of my fav combos:
Rosemary, garlic, olive oil, salt
Thyme, mushrooms, olive oil, salt
Black olives, salt, olive oil
Semi dried tomatoes, feta, salt, olive oil

 

Seriously… Go nuts. Cooking and play are best friends, creating something totally new out of different ingredients is one of life’s simple pleasures.

NB: one of the first things I’ve learned about in my nutrition course is the way that ‘white flour’ is processed, this is why I’ve put the sub in for wholemeal flour. Another post coming to outline this.

 

 

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Stuffed Breakfast Mushrooms

Easy & tasty breakfast idea.. simply fresh large portobello mushrooms, and in the case of these pics, in one we have chorizo, parmesan, thinly sliced red capsicum, chives and pine nuts… too easy!

METHOD
Mix everything in a small bowl, scoop out the stalk of the mushrooms, stuff the mixture in, then pour a light drizzle of olive oil.
Pop them into a pre-heated oven at circa 150 for around 10-12 mins or until the cheese melts and the pine nuts become golden.

Other great combos:
Feta/ basil/ garlic/ mozzarella
Cheddar/ bacon/ red onion/ chives/ dollop of creme friaché once they come out of the oven
Ricotta/ red onion/ thyme

 

The possibilities are delicious and endless! Breakfast doesn’t have to be boring…

 

 

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Aunty T’s Chilli

We’re still in the so-called summer months here at the moment, but it’s been a bit cold, and I’ve been recovering from a nasty virus, so in the interests of a tasty healthy meal I decided to haul myself out of bed, and make a big pot of slow-cooked chilli. The best thing about this is that it tastes even better the following days, as the juices soak in. It’s straightforward, healthy and hearty, and it just cooks away as you go about your life (or go back to bed in my case!)

Caution: lots of chilli in this one, just half or 1/3 it if you like, but remember to layer the different types of chilli as this builds the flavour)

INGREDIENTS
1 kg chuck steak/stewing steak
2 large onions
2 teaspoons garlic
2 teaspoons chilli flakes in oil
2 teaspoons crushed chilli paste
2 teaspoons dried chilli
2 fresh chillis (seeds/membranes in for extra kick)
1x large (400g) tin of tomatoes
2x heaped tablespoons beef stock (minimum)
1x 300g tin red kidney beans

METHOD
Now you can do this one of two ways, brown the beef in a pan (recommended) or if you’re short on time just throw everything in the slow cooker and let it get going. When you brown the meat it does have a lovely rich flavour, but if you’re making this before you scoot off to work you’re not going to be stoked about an extra step so it’s up to you….

I slow cook the above ingredients for a minimum of 6 hours, it needs this much because this is a tough cut of meat, and after the right amount of time, it will fall apart in your mouth…

Around 45 mins before serving I roughly cut up 3x medium-large zucchini, and 2x large red capsicums, to around 3/3cms – chunky and as uniform in size as you can get it. Throw this in, stir it up, and let it soak up the flavours.

Around 20 minutes before serving I also add around 1.5 cups of rice. Theses days I use a pre-cooked bag of Uncle Toby’s rice because it’s easy and fast…. if you want to go the traditional route you should add this (cleaned/ drained so it doesn’t make everything gluggy) at least 2 hours before you plan to serve.

Keep tasting as you go, to ensure the textures and flavours are where you want them to be.

Serving: I served with garlic pita bread, but you can make a wonderfully easy focaccia to go with this, it soaks the juices up (and believe me, people will be scraping the bowl!)

Great for Autumn, Winter or whenever you need a little comfort food.

 

NB: pro-tip, sometimes dishes like this just don’t seem to ‘pop’ the way we want them to, on those days I add a sneaky pinch of cinnamon to the slow cooker, and it’s just magic.

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Perfect Scrambled Eggs

Yes! It is possible to make the perfect scrambled eggs…. and NO you do not add milk to them!

This is my method, echoing one infamous Gordon Ramsay… because ffs this is one of the staples of cooking, and you gotta get that stuff right.

METHOD
For two people: my preference is for six (free range & organic) eggs
Crack these into a pot – add a knob of butter (and nothing else! No seasoning yet)
Put this on the heat and slowly stir…. You’re not whisking, just barely blending…
If they are cooking too fast – take them off as you potter about making the other parts of brunch…
Once they are cooked through, remove from the heat… it will keep cooking but you want it well before the point of drying out…
Then add a tablespoon of creme friaché (sour cream works just as well, but you can’t say it manically in the voice of Randy from SouthPark) stir/ fold into the eggs – don’t whisk!
From there you add your sea salt, cracked pepper, and thinly cut parsley or chives… and it’s ready.

This makes the most thick, creamy amazing scrambled eggs – you have to cut it with your knife. So good.

I’ll often add a combination of parmesan, cherry tomatoes, capsicum, I’ve even added spicy salami and chorizo before – whatever tickles your fancy.

(Best with vogels toast of course….. )

Brunch is one of the most fabulous things in the world….. enjoy!

 

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Spicy Vegetarian Curry

A couple of friends have got me on to #MeatFreeMonday and I think it’s a glorious thing! I am a happy little omnivore but think as a cook you just try a little harder when you don’t have meat to carry a dish…. It’s a rainy blustery day here in Auckland… not cold, but very grey, so tonight I thought I’d whip up a comforting delish vegie curry, using the pumpkin I got last week…

#MeatFreeMonday – homemade curry of pumpkin, chickpea, zucchini, cauliflower, red capsicum, peas – with a yoghurt/coriander dollop for creaminess #EatTheRainbow

INGREDIENTS / METHOD
In a large soup pot add a large roughly diced onion, with a dash of olive oil, then add 1tblsp crushed garlic
Once the onion becomes translucent (‘sweat’ the onions rather then browning them) add the following to the pot:
3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
3 teaspoons chilli powder (and/or fresh chilli for extra kick)
2 teaspoons paprika
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Big pinch sea salt
Big pinch black pepper

I mix that up till you almost have a paste in your pot…. When this heats through add:
1 tin coconut cream
1 tin crushed tomatoes

This is your base, which you add your vegies to.. As above I used the following added to the pot in this order, based on how fast each ingredient cooks:

  • Pumpkin (cut very small so it cooked faster)
  • 1 tin chickpeas
  • Zucchini cut roughly twice as large as the pumpkin
  • Cauliflower (literally just break it into florets of the size you want, too easy)
  • Red capsicum cut about the size of the pumpkin
  • Peas – just use the frozen ones from your freezer, if you add at the end the colour just pops and they have a wonderful texture..
  • Tablespoon of honey

The idea when throwing this together is to let the pumpkin cook first, then throw the rest of the ingredients in…. you don’t want to overlook, it’s about freshness and colour… You can quite literally add what you have on hand, great way to make sure you’re getting enough veg, and using up the ingredients on hand.

Once ready to serve, finely cut up coriander and add to plain unsweetened greek style yoghurt… Mix up and put a tablespoon or so over the vegies for rich creaminess. 

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Lamb Cutlets: Moroccan Style Marinade & Sweet Chilli/ Pistachio Crust

Moroccan Style Paste/Marinade

INGREDIENTS
Fresh garlic – finely chopped
Fresh ginger – finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cardamon
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice,
1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

 

METHOD
Mix together well (ideally with a mortar and pestle if you have one – otherwise in a food processor) and rub this all over the lamb.
Let this soak into the meat for a good couple of hours before you plan to cook, to let the flavours sink in.

 

COOKING
Lightly sear the lamb on the BBQ, the paste will start to cook/blacken – remove from heat and cover in tin foil. Let the meat ‘rest’ for circa 10 mins, it will keep ‘cooking’ in the foil.

Use a basting brush to coat each piece of lamb with a small amount of sweet chilli sauce, then sprinkle toasted crushed pistachios over each piece before serving…

(NOTE: we were too busy eating these for me to take a pic, so I found this image online which was the closest I could find to my finished product, image credit here)

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Spicy Carrot Salad

Easy salad with a little kick, made for last nights bbq…. I made the dressing and kept this separate until close to serving, as it needs to be fresh…

To make carrot ribbons, peel carrots, then swipe the peeler from the fat end to the tip to make ribbons.

 

INGREDIENTS
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons olive oil (I actually used tea seed oil this time)
1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1 teaspoon dry chilli
Sea salt
1 1/2 pounds carrots, peeled lengthwise into thin ribbons
1/2 cup coriander leaves
Handful of chopped raisins

 

METHOD
In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, vinegars, honey, sesame oil, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, and 1 teaspoon salt. Pour the dressing over the carrots, add the coriander, and toss well. Season to taste with salt, and serve.