The 5-2 Challenge. More Reinvention. The Modern Bircher Muesli. Overnight Oats in a Jar with Raspberries

Posted on May 3, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

Overnight Oats in a Jar

Oats are a staple pantry item in our house. With a daughter who swims most mornings they are the perfect, portable breakfast solution. Served in one of two ways. Depending on the season. A thermos of steaming hot porridge. A cooling flask of bircher muesli. Fortunately she adores oats but I still try to make her breakfast interesting with different  add in combinations of fruit and nuts each day. High in fibre this truly is the breakfast of champions. Filling with a low GI it sustains the body with long lasting energy. And if you believe the marketing hype on the back of the pack, oats are “a superfood for a super you”.

Whilst preparing oats in some form or other really has become part of my daily routine, I haven’t been eating them as much as I probably should.  Over the past month or so I have been noticing posts popping up all over the internet and blogosphere about Overnight Oats in a Breakfast Jar. I may be a little slow on the uptake but suddenly it has occurred to me that this new fad is nothing less than Bircher Muesli packaged up in a jar. Reminding me of the maxim – everything  old is suddenly new again.

Mulling over this realisation it hits me. Bircher Muesli is the perfect meal solution for the 5-2 challenge. A no fuss meal that is very easy to prepare. No cooking required. My personal preference may be to have my first meal at midday on a fast day, but I see no reason why it shouldn’t be oats. Incredibly filling but low in calories at approximately 200 calories per serve, it even leaves room for a more substantial evening meal.

With 400 calories to a whole jar, I’m thinking it might be an easy way to easily knock over two meals. Lunch and dinner. Send the rest of the family out for a take-away meal and spend my evening relaxing. Sometimes we all need a break from the kitchen. The more I think about it the more appealing this idea becomes. It is exactly what I intend to do today.

My  fasting day will look like this. With room for an additional small indulgence if I so desire.

Breakfast 2 cups of tea

4
Lunch Overnight Oats in a Jar with Berries

200
Mid Afternoon 2 cups of tea

4
Dinner Overnight Oats in a Jar with Berries

200
2 cups of tea

4
Total Calories

412

Checking back through my blog I notice that I previously posted my original bircher muesli recipe last Spring. Here it is again. Reinvented as Overnight Oats in a Jar.  With  raspberries for their antioxidant properties. Adapted for the 5-2 challenge. Complete with calorie count.

Overnight Oats in a Jar with Raspberries

The calorie count for this recipe has been updated and is  now correct. In the original post I inadvertently misread the energy value for 1/2 cup dry oats as representing 1 cup. A combination of my deteriorating eyesight and the very small print on the back of the pack of my Uncle Toby’s Oats. Apologies for any inconvenience or confusion. Obviously the calorie count is now a little higher. To compensate you can reduce the amount of oats used in the recipe to 3/4 of a cup and apple juice to 1/3 cup, keeping the quantities of all other ingredients unchanged.  This will bring the total calorie count for the jar to 467 calories or 234 calories per serve. Or do as I will do from hereon in. Limit myself to only one serve of this delicious bircher muesli on fast days.

One jar (550 calories)
Serves 2 (275 calories per serve)

Overnight
1 cup dry rolled oats (306 calories)
½ cup apple juice (or freshly squeezed orange juice) (30 calories)
1 teaspoon honey  (20 calories)
1 tablespoons currants or raisins (70 calories)
1 tablespoons slivered almonds (20 calories)
a sprinkling of mixed spice

Next Morning
1 small Granny Smith apple, coarsely grated (skin on) (40 calories)
1/4 cup yoghurt (35 calories)
a generous squeeze of lemon (2 calories)
1/2 cup raspberries, to serve. (30 calories)

COMBINE  rolled oats, apple juice, mixed spice, dried fruit and nuts in a jar or bowl. Stir together to combine.
CHILL overnight (or for at least two hours).
NEXT MORNING stir in yoghurt, grated apple and lemon juice.
SERVE  topped with raspberries.

Posted in Breakfast, Fruit, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Deliciously Soft and Creamy. Risotto With Italian Sausage, Mushroom and Taleggio.

Posted on May 1, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

Risotto With Sausage Mushrooms and Taleggio

Tonight I made risotto for dinner thinking its soft and creamy texture would be the perfect meal solution for my daughter’s brand new braces. The orthodontist had warned that her teeth and gums might be sore and tender  for a few days and it would be a good idea to serve up food that didn’t  require too much effort to eat.

One of my daughter’s favourite risottos is made with Italian pork and fennel sausages, mushrooms and taleggio. Taleggio is an Italian soft washed rind cheese. Hailing from the Lombardy region. Dating back to the 10th century, when the cheese was aged in caves and grottos and hand washed with saltwater-soaked sponges. Today modern cheesemakers age their taleggio in carefully temperature controlled cellars to emulate the climate of those ancient caves. Soft, creamy and runny like a brie or camembert, but with a mellow, earthy, almost nutty taste, taleggio pairs beautifully with mushrooms and robust Italian sausages.

Tonight’s risotto was deliciously soft and creamy and very easy to eat. With one small unforeseen hiccup. A few soft, squishy grains of arborio rice became caught in the brace’s brackets. After dinner my daughter spent a good fifteen minutes brushing her teeth. Her verdict? No matter. It was well worth the effort.

Risotto With Italian Sausage, Mushroom and Taleggio.

Serves 4

4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 tablespoon olive oil
200g mushrooms, sliced
400g  good quality Italian pork and fennel sausages, meat squeezed out of casings and crumbled
50g  butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 ½ cups arborio rice
¼ cup white wine
150g Taleggio, rind removed, cut coarsely into small chunks
50g Parmesan, grated
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

HEAT  oil in a large pan over medium flame. Add crumbled sausage meat. Saute until well browned breaking up any larger lumps with the back of a wooden spoon as you go.
ADD mushrooms to the pan.  Cook until soft. Remove sausage meat and mushrooms to a plate. Set aside.
HEAT stock in a separate saucepan and bring to a simmer.
MELT butter in the same pan used to cook the sausage and mushrooms. Add the onions, celery and garlic. Sweat, stirring occasionally until soft and translucent.
RETURN the sausage and mushrooms to the pan. Stir well to combine.
ADD  rice. Stir over medium heat for a minute or so to ensure the grains are well coated.
DEGLAZE  the pan with wine. Stirring constantly until evaporated.
LADLE by ladle slowly add the hot stock, allowing the rice to absorb the stock each time. Stir constantly for about 20 minutes.  When cooked the rice should be tender yet firm to the bite and the risotto  creamy. Remove pan from heat.
ADD the Taleggio and Parmesan cheeses. Stir until melted.
SERVE immediately, topped with extra parmesan cheese, and a generous sprinkling of parsley and freshly cracked black pepper.

Posted in Cheese, Rice, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

The 5-2 Challenge. Keeping Busy. Oven Poached Chicken Breast With a Roast Capsicum, Tomato and Couscous Stuffing.

Posted on April 30, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

Oven Poached Chicken With Couscous

This morning I woke up hungry. Contemplated poached eggs on toast for breakfast. Then it hit me. Today was a fast day. Nothing but cups of tea until midday. Usually I’m able to cruise through my fast day mornings. Usually I’m not hungry at all. Perhaps I subconsciously eat sufficient for dinner the  night before to compensate for any potential hunger pangs. Today was different. I had to keep busy, very busy to avoid any unscheduled grazing.

In the five short weeks that I have embarked on the 5-2 eating plan one pattern is crystal clear. Eating breakfast in the morning seems to whet an insatiable appetite. If I can abstain from eating until midday  my fast day is immeasurably easier. Keeping busy in the morning is key.

By the time mid-day rolled by I was ravenous.Ready to eat anything in sight. Moments like these are saved by  soup. Thoughtfully stashed away in the freezer. Today it was a thick and hearty, dairy free, homemade  vegetable and lentil soup.  Defrosted. Reheated. Incredibly filling at a tiny 83 calories per cup.

Before too long my thoughts turned to dinner. This afternoon I’m craving protein. With a relatively generous calorie allocation still on hand, I want something satisfying and delicious. This Oven Poached Chicken Breast with a Roast Capsicum and Tomato Couscous Stuffing fits the brief perfectly. A dish I would happily enjoy on a feast day. High praise indeed.

Here is today’s fast day menu and my latest 5-2 diet recipe offering.

Breakfast 2 cups of tea

4
Lunch 1 cup Vegetable and Lentil Soup

83
Mid Afternoon 2 small mandarins

80
Dinner Oven Poached Chicken Breast with Couscous Stuffing

325
1 cup of tea

2
Total Calories

494

Oven Poached Chicken Breast With a Roast Capsicum, Tomato and Couscous Stuffing

Serves 4 ( 325 calories per serve)

1/2 tablespoon  olive oil (60 calories)
1/2 onion , thinly sliced (15 calories)
4 x 150g chicken breast fillets,  thinly sliced and pounded (990 calories)
1 teaspoon fresh root ginger, grated(1 calorie)
1 teaspoon fresh harissa paste (22 calories)
1 red capsicum, roasted, deseeded, peeled and sliced (30 calories)
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, peeled and quartered (15 calories)
1/2 cup (80 g) couscous (160 calories)
1/2 cup water
handful fresh soft herbs, chopped, (2 calories)
freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon (1 calorie)

To Prepare the Couscous Stuffing

HEAT olive oil in a large frying pan and cook the onion for 1-2 minutes  until just softened.
ADD harissa, grated ginger and couscous. Cook for a minute more, stirring well to make sure the grains are coated with the spice paste and oil.
ADD hot water. Once couscous is just beginning to bubble remove pan from heat. Cover with a lid or tightly cover the pan with foil and leave for about 5 mins until the couscous has soaked up all the liquid and is soft.
FLUFF up couscous with a fork.Stir through roasted capsicums and tomatoes, lemon juice and herbs.
SET aside to cool.

To Assemble and Poach the Chicken

LAY thinly pounded chicken breast fillets out flat on a chopping board.
SPOON 2-3 tablespoons of the cooled couscous mixture into the centre of each fillet. Roll up and secure with toothpicks. Reserve unused couscous for serving.
PLACE filled and rolled chicken breasts in a single layer in a roasting dish. Season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
POUR 2 -3 cups of hot boiling water over the chicken. The water should not completely cover the chicken, just reach halfway up the dish.
COVER and  bake at 180 C  for 15 – 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove toothpicks and transfer chicken to a serving platter.
TO SERVE slice the chicken on the diagonal and sprinkle over reserved couscous.

Posted in Poultry, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Neapolitan Treat. Pizzette Fritte. Fried Miniature Pizzas.

Posted on April 29, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie
https://thepaddingtonfoodie.com/2013/04/29/a-neapolitan-treat-pizzette-fritte-fried-miniature-pizzas/

 

Our last leisurely family dinner before school goes back this week. A very special Neapolitan treat. Pizzette Fritte. Flash fried rounds of pizza dough topped with a simple tomato, oil and basil sugo and a sprinkling of mozzarella or grated Parmigiano cheese. Legend has it that this is how the very first ever pizzas were made. Back in the day when food was scarce and money was even scarcer, necessity was the mother of invention. The resourceful nona’s and mama’s of Naples most likely served pizzette fritte straight from their frying pans. Without sauce or cheese. Just a sprinkling of salt. True cucina povera.

They may have their roots in more frugal times but pizzette fritte are the lightest, crispiest pizzas I’ve ever eaten. Best served straight away. Hot from the grill. With any number of combinations of delicious toppings. Tonight I served my pizzette with a simple sugo and mozzarella topping. It didn’t take long for the hordes to descend upon a huge platter of these delicious morsels. A real crowd pleaser.

Fortunately pizzette fritte are quite straight forward to put together. All that is needed is a quantity of pizza dough, a tin of tomatoes, some aromatics and a little cheese. It is no coincidence that the best recipes always use the simplest ingredients. For my pizza bases I departed from tradition and  used Annabel Langbein’s impossibly fluffy Flat Bread recipe. It’s one of my newest discoveries and worked incredibly well in these pizzette. For the purists I have included a link to a fabulous and more traditional pizza dough recipe I have used for decades. Although something tells me that Annabel’s recipe is going to become something of  a stalwart in our house. We celebrated the start of these school holidays with pizza and focaccia made using her Flat Bread recipe and here we are revisiting the recipe again, albeit in a slightly different form, as we mark the return to school.

And all those scraps of leftover pizza dough? I gathered them together and shaped them into golf sized balls. Fried them in oil and dusted them with cinnamon and sugar as any thrifty Italian mama would do. Instant doughnuts. In the eyes of my children I was the best mum in the world.

Pizette Fritte. Fried Miniature Pizzas.

1 quantity pizza dough. Use a traditional pizza dough recipe (here) or  Annabel Langbein’s Flat Bread dough recipe (here)
extra virgin olive oil for frying

For the Topping

1 tablespoon  extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, crushed
400 ml diced tomatoes, tinned
1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped
1 generous pinch of sugar
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
mozzarella, sliced or coarsely grated

PREPARE the pizza dough according to your preferred recipe. Allow to prove until it has doubled in size.
WHILE the dough rests, prepare the tomato sauce topping. Sauté the onion and garlic with a pinch of salt in extra virgin olive oil. When soft and translucent add  tomatoes and  sugar.  Cover and cook until the sauce thickens.  Stir in the basil and set aside.
ROLL or stretch the rested pizza dough on a floured bench until it is about 1 cm thick.
USING a glass tumbler or 8 cm biscuit cutter stamp out  circles from the dough. The flat bread pizza dough made about 40 pizzette.
PLACE circles of dough on baking paper lined trays. Cover with a clean tea towel  and let rise for 30-45 minutes.
POUR about 2 cm of olive oil into a deep fry pan or wok. Heat oil. To test if hot enough break off a small piece of dough. If it immediately begins to sizzle and brown, the oil is ready. Do not heat the oil to smoking point. The pizzette will brown too quickly and may burn.
CAREFULLY lower 4 or 5 circles of dough into the hot oil at a time. Within a few seconds they will puff up and bubble. When golden, turn and cook other side. Remove and drain on paper. Cook the remaining pizzette in batches.
TOP fried pizzette with tomato sauce and mozzarella while still warm. Transfer to an oven tray and place under a hot grill until the cheese bubbles and melts. Serve immediately.

Posted in Pizza, Small Bites, To Serve with Drinks, Vegetarian, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Not So Humble Crumble. Deeply Satisfying. Apple and Rhubarb Crumble With Hazelnuts and a Hint of Ginger.

Posted on April 27, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

AppleandRhubarb

One of the benefits of the cooler weather is fruit crumble. Deeply satisfying. The ultimate comfort food. In our house we make crumble with almost any combination of apples, stone fruit or berries. More often than not we follow the seasons, using the ripest, sweetest fruit we can find. Our absolute, all-time favourite combination is apple and rhubarb. Rich ruby-red hues bubbling through a golden crust. Tart. Sweet. Gloriously soft with a crunchy topping.

Everyone seems to have a recipe that they swear by. Here’s mine. The secret to a great crumble lies not in the combination of fruit or topping. It’s in the technique. Follow a few simple rules and the result is perfect crumble every time.

  1. Unless the fruit is very soft, berries or very ripe stone fruit, I like to cook it first to soften it a little before it reaches the baking dish. I cook my fruit with just lemon juice and  sugar in a wide shallow wok. No water required. I also add finely grated lemon zest for added freshness and zing. 
  2. Remove the cooled fruit from the pan with a slotted spoon. Leaving any extra liquid behind in the pan. You definitely do not want to end up with a soggy crumble. There are always takers for that juice in our house and howls of protest when there doesn’t seem to be any.
  3. For a crisp and crunchy crumble topping use very cold butter and cut it through the flour and sugar mixture with your fingertips. You are looking for a rough, coarse texture. I find using the food processor can easily produce too fine a crumb. Mix through the nuts or any other additions to the topping last. Rolled oats, coconut or crushed amaretti biscuits are popular choices.
  4. Scatter the crumble over a cool fruit base and place immediately into a preheated oven. As the fruit has been pre cooked the crumble will cook quickly. Don’t be tempted to press the crumble into the fruit. You are looking to achieve a light, crumbly,free form topping, not a heavy crust.

I think that just about covers it all. Of late I have been baking my crumble in two smaller pie dishes for no other reason than I think it looks prettier and gives the illusion of more crumble for my greedy family. On occasion I do cook my crumbles in individual ramekins and this recipe lends itself to this perfectly. Such a delicious dessert. So simple to bake with a few ingredients. The not so humble crumble.

Appleand RhubarbCrumble

Apple and Rhubarb Crumble with Hazelnuts and a Hint of Ginger.

Serves 4 – 6

For the Apple and Rhubarb Filling

1 bunch rhubarb
5 large apples, peeled, cored and chopped
3/4 cup white sugar
juice and zest of 1 lemon

TRIM the rhubarb and cut the stems into 2.5cm lengths. Set aside
HEAT a large shallow frying pan  or wok over medium heat and add the apples, sugar, lemon zest and juice. Cook, stirring for 3-4 minutes until apples are just beginning to soften.
ADD the chopped rhubarb  and cook for a further 4-5 minutes or until the rhubarb is tender but still holds its shape. The rhubarb may release quite a bit of liquid.
USE a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked fruit to the prepared dish. Leave behind any liquid remaining in the frying pan. Allow the fruit to cool a little. Taste and add extra sugar if needed.

For the Crumble Topping

1 cup plain flour
3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
125 grams unsalted butter, chilled and diced
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted, skinned and roughly chopped

PREHEAT oven to 180 C. GREASE one 4 cup capacity ceramic oven proof dish, or two 20 cm round pie dishes.
WITH your fingertips, rub together the flour, brown sugar, ginger, butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs and starts to clump together. Stir through the chopped hazelnuts.
SPRINKLE the crumble evenly over the fruit base. Do not press down.
BAKE for 20 – 30 minutes or until golden and bubbling. Cooking time will depend on the size of the baking dish. Serve with cream or ice-cream.

Posted in Baked, Fruit, Sweet Treats, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The 5-2 Challenge. Reinterpreting a Classic. As a Salad. Prawn Cocktail With Green Goddess Dressing.

Posted on April 26, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

Prawn Cocktail Salad

The beauty of the 5-2 diet is that there is no set menu. On fast days you can eat whatever you want as long as you keep to your 500 for women and 600 for men calorie limit. Which is intended to be approximately 25% of your recommended daily calorie intake. With all the calorie counting and minimising of fats and oils and carbohydrates in my diet on fast days I have been missing dressing on my salads. There is no way around it the key to a great salad lies in  its dressing. The vital component that brings together all the individual flavours on the plate. Salad without dressing is just a pile of vegetables on a plate. Filling and nutritious, the perfect diet food,  but not particularly exciting to eat.

In my last 5-2 Challenge post I was more than a little  excited to discover Green Goddess Dressing  With Avocado and Greek Yoghurt. At only 22 calories per tablespoon it truly is spectacular find. So for my very next fast day I was determined  to feast on a salad adorned with generous dollops of that creamy avocado dressing.  Here’s what I came up with. A  very retro prawn cocktail inspired salad.

There are many of us who will remember the prawn cocktail. An iconic dish. Dating back to the Seventies. Quite de rigueur at suburban dinner parties and  a staple fixture at wedding receptions for at least two decades. The classic prawn cocktail was nothing more than shredded iceberg lettuce, sliced avocado and prawns with a Marie-Rose sauce. My version is somewhat more substantial. A mountain of garden fresh vegetables and king tiger prawns layered on top soft mignonette lettuce leaves and topped with the creamy avocado Green Goddess. Part dip. Part dressing. Not only does this salad look and taste great, it only takes a few minutes to prepare.

One bowl came in at an impressive 190 calories per serve. It was enormous and incredibly filling. For the very first time, after a full day’s fasting, I could barely finish my plate. Perhaps after five weeks my body is used to this way of eating. Perhaps I have finally figured out how to eat on my fast days. For the moment it’s working so I’m happy.

Here is a snapshot of my day’s fasting.  For the first time ever I came in at well under my calorie allowance. So much so that I treated myself to a rather late supper of a toasted crumpet. It’s all mind over matter I know. I didn’t need that crumpet I just knew I had some extra calories up my sleeve. At least I stopped at one. I could have had two.

Breakfast 2 cups of tea

4
Lunch 1 cup Pea and Rocket Soup

85
Mid Afternoon 2 cups of tea

4
Dinner Prawn Cocktail Salad

190
Supper Crumpet with 1 teaspoon butter

106
1 cup of tea

2
Total Calories

391

Prawn Cocktail Salad With Green Goddess Dressing

Serves 4 (190 calories per serve)

500 g cooked king tiger prawns (410 calories)
juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon (12 calories)
sea salt and pepper
75 g baby green beans, topped, tailed and  blanched (23 calories)
75 g baby sugar snap peas, topped, tailed and blanched (32 calories)
50 g rocket (12 calories)
1 medium red capsicum, julienned (31 calories)
1/2 fennel, shaved (16 calories)
1/2 punnet cherry tomatoes, halved (27 calories)
1 mignonette lettuce, leaves separated (20 calories)
1 quantity Green Goddess Dressing with Avocado and Greek Yoghurt, recipe here ( 22 calories per tablespoon)

SEASON the prawns with the juice and zest of one lemon, and a generous sprinkling of sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
SET out four bowls. Place 3- 4 lettuce leaves in the bottom of each bowl.
LAYER over the prawns, beans, sugar snap peas, rocket, capsicum, fennel and cherry tomatoes.
TOP with a generous dollop or two of Green Goddess Dressing. Serve remaining dressing in a small bowl on the side.

Posted in Salads, Seafood, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Lest We Forget. Remembering Our War Veterans. ANZAC Biscuits with a White Chocolate Ganache.

Posted on April 25, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

 AnzacBiscuitswithGanache

Today  Australia and New Zealand  celebrates ANZAC Day. A national day of remembrance. Honouring the bravery  of  all the men and women who have served their country through  war. Recognising how their selfless sacrifices allow us to enjoy the lives we lead today.

The ANZAC tradition of courage, determination and  mateship, was established on 25 April 1915 when the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC)  landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey.  It was the start of a bloody campaign that lasted eight months and saw some 25,000 Australian casualties. This campaign created a legend. The ANZAC spirit.  Encapsulating the qualities of courage, determination and mateship  first demonstrated at that Gallipoli landing.

This year marks the 98th anniversary of the Gallipoli landing. Today many of us will be commemorating ANZAC Day in so many different ways. It’s a day for Dawn services, Anzac Day Marches, Laying of Wreaths, Wearing of Rosemary (for Remembrance) or Poppies (for the Fallen), gatherings and barbecues with family and friends, or perhaps  taking your chances at a game of two-up at the local pub or club.

For me ANZAC Day is also synonymous with ANZAC Biscuits. Baked by wives and mothers during World War I, they were packed in food parcels and sent to Australian and New Zealand soldiers in the trenches. Here is the original recipe for these iconic Australian biscuits updated a little with the addition of a white chocolate ganache. I’ve baked a batch for ANZAC Day. Lest we forget.

ANZAC Biscuits with  a White Chocolate Ganache

Makes 16 Sandwiched Anzac Biscuits if level teaspoons of the mixture are rolled  and baked

1 cup plain flour
1 cup desiccated coconut
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup rolled oats
125 g butter
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons boiling water

PREHEAT oven to 160 C. Line two oven trays with baking paper.
COMBINE dry ingredients – flour, coconut, brown sugar and rolled oats in a large bowl.
MELT butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over medium heat.
DISSOLVE bicarbonate of soda in 2 tablespoons of water in a small cup. Add to melted butter and golden syrup mixture. Stir well to combine. The mixture will froth and increase in volume.
POUR the frothy butter mixture into the dry ingredients. Mix well.
ROLL level  teaspoonfuls of the mixture into balls and place on lined oven trays. Allow room for the biscuits to spread.
SLIGHTLY flatten the balls with the back of a fork.
BAKE for 15 – 20 minutes in a preheated 160 C oven until biscuits are golden brown. Cool slightly before transferring to wire racks. As they cool the biscuits will harden.
WHEN cool place a little ganache on the smooth side of half the biscuits. Sandwich together with the remaining half.

White Chocolate Ganache

250g white chocolate
125 ml pouring cream

COMBINE chocolate and cream in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir with a metal spoon until smooth. Remove bowl from heat.
SET aside at room temperature to cool, stirring occasionally, until ganache is thick and spreadable.

Posted in Baked, Sweet Treats, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

From the Japanese Izakaya. Marinated, Skewered and Grilled. Chicken Yakitori with Spring Onion.

Posted on April 24, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

chickenyakitori

One of the highlights of any trip to Japan must be a visit to a traditional izakaya. Not quite bar, not quite restaurant. Izakaya are warm, cosy, happy places. The perfect venue to catch up with friends for a beer, sake or shochu or two. And share delicious plates of  food. Gyoza, yakitori, karaage, sashimi, edamame and other regional specialties.

One of my  favourite izakaya offerings is yakitori. Chicken thigh fillets marinated in a very special sweet soy, sake and mirin sauce. Threaded onto skewers with spring onions. Then lightly charred over a searing hot grill. Very easy to recreate at home. Here is the recipe I like to use. Always well received by family and friends.

Chicken Yakitori with Spring Onion

Makes approximately 20 skewers

1/2 cup Japanese soy sauce
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup mirin
4 tablespoons sake
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 kg chicken thigh fillets, trimmed, cut into 3cm pieces
8 long green spring  onions, trimmed, cut into 4cm lengths
20 bamboo skewers

SOAK skewers in cold water for 15 minutes. Drain.
MEANWHILE, combine soy sauce, stock, mirin, sake, sugar and pepper in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 5 minutes or until sauce has reduced and thickened slightly. Allow to cool completely.
PLACE chicken in a glass or ceramic bowl. Coat with half the cooled sauce. Leave to marinate in the refrigerator for at least an hour.
THREAD chicken and spring onions onto skewers. Place onto a paper lined tray. Brush with some of the reserved sauce.
PREHEAT bbq or grill on medium-high heat until hot. Grill skewers, basting with sauce, for 6 to 8 minutes or until cooked through.
SERVE with ice cold beer.

Posted in Poultry, Small Bites, To Serve with Drinks, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The 5-2 Challenge. Adapting Recipes To Fit The Brief. Green Goddess Dressing With Avocado and Greek Yoghurt.

Posted on April 23, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

GreenGoddessDressimg

I was watching Jamie Oliver whip up a Green Goddess Dressing on his show 15 Minute Meals the other night. Made with avocado, fresh herbs and yoghurt to dress a Mexican tortilla salad. One concept I have struggled a little with on the 5-2 Challenge has been cutting the fat to produce  interesting and delicious low calorie sauces and dressings. Sometimes I want something a little bit more substantial than a squeeze of lemon or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. I’m happy to fast but I want my meagre 500 calories a day allocation to not only be healthy and jam packed with nutrients but delicious to boot.It’s the only way I can be sure that I will adhere to this eating plan for the long term.

I’d never eaten Green Goddess Dressing before but it looked delicious and I could think of quite a few ways in which I could incorporate it into my 5-2 eating plan. As a dressing. Obviously. As a dip with raw vegetable crudites. As a salsa to accompany meat, chicken or seafood. On feast days I could imagine using it as a spread in hamburgers or steak sandwiches. The list is endless really.

First port of call? A little history lesson about this intriguing dressing.  It seems it was created in 1923 by  Phillip Roemer, executive chef of the Palace Hotel, for a banquet in honor of   actor George Arliss, who at the time was starring in a popular play by William Archer entitled The Green Goddess. The  original recipe for Green Goddess Dressing still exists in  the annals of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Since the dressing was created, the Green Goddess Salad has become a permanent fixture on the menu  at the hotel. Its modern day interpretation is The Garden Court Crab Salad.  Featuring generous quantities of crab, mixed baby greens, fresh locally grown Californian vegetables. Offered with a choice of dressings, including the Green Goddess. Definitely a dish I would like to sample for myself when next I find myself in San Francisco.

The Original Green Goddess Dressing

1 c. mayonnaise
1/2 c. sour cream
1/4 c. each chives or scallions and parsley, finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
3 anchovy fillets, minced
Salt and pepper to taste

Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl until well blended. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate.

Obviously the inclusion of mayonnaise and sour cream, whilst undoubtedly delicious, just will not do on a fast day. So with Jamie for my inspiration here is a fast day friendly version of Green Goddess Dressing. Made with Avocado and Greek Yoghurt. Anchovies optional. It truly is delicious. At a calorie count of only 22 calories per tablespoon I will be dolloping it on my salads. Or perhaps dipping slivers of carrot and cucumber into it to stave off any errant afternoon hunger pangs. Sometimes there is nothing for it but to adapt a well loved recipe to fit the brief. And whilst I haven’t yet had the opportunity to make the Original Green Goddess recipe, I plan to one day soon.

 Green Goddess Dressing With Avocado and Greek Yoghurt.

Makes 1 cup which equals 16 tablespoons of dressing
351 calories per cup / 22 calories per tablespoon

1/2 cup Greek yogurt (65 calories)
1 small ripe Shepard avocado, pitted and peeled (250 calories)
2 handfuls of fresh soft herbs, choose from parsley, coriander, tarragon basil and mint (4 calories)
2 roughly chopped long green spring onions (10 calories)
1 clove garlic (4 calories)
2  anchovies ( optional) (16 calories)
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 fresh lemon juice (2 calories)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Process until herbs are finely chopped and all ingredients are combined into a smooth sauce. Store for 2-3 days in the fridge in an airtight container.

Posted in Marinades, Pastes and Dressings, Salads, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Silky Hainanese Chicken. Bill Granger’s Warm Poached Chicken with Onion Rice and Fresh Ginger Relish.

Posted on April 22, 2013 by thepaddingtonfoodie

Poached Hainanese Chicken

It’s been raining all day. The perfect dinner for a cold, wet and rainy Saturday night?  Soft, silky Hainanese Chicken. Delicate, fragrant poached chicken. Served with onion rice,  ginger relish and a generous drizzling of  broth. Warming. Comforting. Delicious. Simple and satisfying. One of my very favourite wet weather meals. I like to think of it as medicine for the soul. There are hundreds of variations on this dish but the one I always come back to is Bill Granger’s rendition from one of his earliest cookbooks Sydney Food.

The secret to soft, moist and silky chicken? Allow the  whole bird to simmer  ever so gently in  broth for just half an hour. Turn off the heat, keep the pot tightly covered and  leave to steep in the pot  for another half an hour or so. It really is as easy as that. The chicken will be perfectly cooked. I promise. When the chicken is cooked, use the broth to make the onion rice. All that’s left to do is  prepare the fresh ginger relish and chop the poached chicken into chunks. Assemble  all the components into a shallow bowl and finish with more of the fragrant stock. Dinner is served.

Bill Granger’s Warm Poached Chicken with Onion Rice and Fresh Ginger Relish

Serves 6

1 x 1.5 kg chicken, excess fat removed
1 bunch coriander (cilantro), including roots (reserve leaves for sauce)
3 spring (green) onions, chopped
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 tablespoons salt
500g long-grain rice
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon crushed garlic
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 onion, finely sliced

To serve
coriander leaves
1 long red chilli, sliced on the diagonal
fresh ginger relish, recipe follows

PLACE chicken in a large saucepan and add coriander roots and stems, spring onions, peppercorns, salt and two litres of water. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a bare simmer, cover saucepan and continue to simmer for 25 minutes.
REMOVE  from heat and leave the chicken in the pot for a further 40 minutes, without lifting the lid.

WASH rice until water runs clear. Drain.
HEAT the oils in a saucepan over low heat and add garlic, ginger and onion. Cook for 15 minutes. Add rice to the pan and stir-fry for three minutes.
INCREASE heat to medium-high, add a litre of chicken liquid to rice and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, for 15 minutes.
REMOVE from heat and let stand for 10 minutes without lifting the lid.
SEASON with salt and pepper before serving.

REMOVE the chicken from the saucepan and  cut chicken into serving-size pieces.
GARNISH with sprigs of coriander.
SERVE  with onion rice, fresh ginger relish and fresh chillies.

Fresh Ginger Relish

2 tablespoons ginger, cut into match sticks
8 springs (green) onions, finely sliced
1/4 cup vegetable oil
salt and pepper

IN A mortar and pestle lightly bruise the ginger and spring onions.
HEAT the oil in a pan until smoking and pour over ginger mixture in a heat-proof bowl.
SEASON with salt and pepper. Allow to cool before serving.

Posted in Poultry, Rice, What I Love to Cook | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments