Monthly Archives: March 2017

Kitchen News 1st March

Posted on March 9, 2017 by melhm
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A little individual gluten-free tart we made with a corn tortilla

Lots going on this fortnight – and lots of people helping which has been absolutely great!

Last week I sent an email out to each class in the SAKGP with all their lessons listed until the end of Term 2 – so that those who have busy schedules may be able to lock something in down the track. Please ask your class rep if you’d like to see it. There are only 6 or so kitchen lessons for each class until July so not that many!

Mish and the garden kids have been frantically getting new seedlings and seeds into the ground but for the moment we’re making the best of our late summer garden beds: the little baby wild tomatoes have been sliced into a flaky French tomato tart, the baby zucchinis we’ve been stuffing into the spiralisers for Zucchini, mint and feta salad with crunchy pangrattato, and we’ve tried to tame the feral celery into one of our faves, Celery and nutmeg soup.

A new recipe for us has been a veritable hit in the Cottage: crispy Red lentil fritters with green yoghurt, green from all the coriander, parsley and green chilli, and it’s a surefire winner for an easy midweek dinner! And to round out the menu, we’ve been chopping up rolling out crunchy and delicious Rosemary and thyme grissini breadsticks.

5P and 6Y had their first kitchen lesson this week due to Camp and other factors, so to welcome them back I surprised them with a special Pancake Day menu: Spinach and feta crepes with ratatouille (see, you can have savoury pancakes!), Oat pancakes with roasted nectarines and plums, and Pikelets with vanilla mascarpone and lemongrass syrup. Leftovers? Kidding right?!

So thanks for coming along in Kitchen, we all really appreciate it!

See you soon, Melissa

PS. If you have any unwanted forks at home please send them in to the Cottage! I’m having trouble finding any at Vinnies! x

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Red lentil fritters with green yoghurt

Posted on March 9, 2017 by melhm

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These little morsels may be on the diminutive side, but they punch well above their weight in the flavour stakes. If you wanted to make them gluten-free, you could substitute the flour with teff flour or GF self-raising flour – you may need to add a little more to make the required consistency.

Fresh from the garden: lemon, onion, coriander, parsley, garlic, chilli
Recipe source: adapted from a recipe on gourmetraveller.com.au
Serves: 6 or 24 tastes

Equipment:

  • Frying pan
  • Measures: jug, cup, tablespoon, teaspoon, ½ teaspoon
  • Mortar and pestle
  • Chopping boards and knives
  • Large saucepan and lid
  • Mixing bowls – large, medium, small
  • Microplane zester
  • Citrus juicer
  • Salad spinner
  • Tongs
  • Scales
  • Mini chopper processor
  • Whisk
  • Serving plates and little bowls
 Ingredients:

·       ½ onion

·       2 garlic cloves

·       2 teaspoons coriander seeds

·       2 teaspoons cumin seeds

·       2 tablespoons olive oil

·       200g (1 cup) red lentils

·       2 eggs

·       100g self-raising flour

·       2 lemons

·       Rice Bran oil, for shallow-frying

Green yoghurt

·       Small bunch coriander

·       Small bunch flat-leaf parsley

·       1 garlic clove

·       ¼ long green chilli

·       ½ teaspoon ground cumin

·       ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

·       1 tablespoon olive oil

·       100g Greek yoghurt

What to do:

For the lentil fritters:

  1. Measure the spices into the frying pan and heat, gently toasting for a few minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool, then coarsely grind with the mortar and pestle.
  2. Peel and finely chop the onion and 2 cloves of garlic.
  3. Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the saucepan over medium-high heat, add onion and garlic and sauté until tender for about 5 minutes.
  4. Stir in spices and fry until fragrant for 30 seconds, then add lentils and 650ml water, bring to a simmer, cover and cook until lentils are tender and liquid is absorbed for about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.

 For the green yoghurt:

  1. Wash the lemon and zest only the thin layer of yellow rind, reserving for the lentil mixture, then juice both halves.
  2. Wash the herbs and spin dry. Add just the leaves from the parsley and all the coriander to the small mini-chopper.
  3. Peel the remaining clove of garlic and add to the mini chopper.
  4. Slice the chilli in half (using gloves if you wish). Remove the seeds, discarding into compost, and slice chilli into small bits, adding to the mini chopper.
  5. Finally add the spices to the mini chopper, olive oil and lemon juice and process to a fine purée. Transfer to a bowl, season to taste, swirl in yoghurt and divide into serving bowls.

To finish the lentils:

  1. Separate the eggs, carefully, so that the yolks remain intact and the whites are clean.
  2. Stir egg yolks into lentils, then stir in flour and lemon rind and season generously to taste. Whisk egg whites and a pinch of salt in a separate clean and dry bowl to firm peaks and fold into lentil mixture.
  3. Preheat oven to 180C and heat 3cm oil in the frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add heaped tablespoonfuls of lentil mixture in batches and cook, turning occasionally, until golden brown for about 2-3 minutes.
  4. Drain on paper towels, then slice in half if needed. Cut remaining lemon into quarters to serve.
  5. Divide onto serving plates, pop bowls of yoghurt and lemon wedges on and take to the table.

Notes: Why do we need to use gloves when preparing chillies? How can you tell when the oil is hot enough to fry?

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Zucchini, mint and feta salad with crunchy pangrattato

Posted on March 9, 2017 by melhm

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If you have a spiraliser then this dish is easy and looks fantastic! If not, then julienne your zucchini by slicing or peeling them into as thin strips as possible.

Fresh from the garden: zucchini, mint, lemon, sage, mint
Recipe source: Melissa
Serves: 6 or 24 tastes

Equipment:

·     Food processor

·     Measures – cup, ½ cup, tablespoon, teaspoon

·     Microplane zester

·     Paper towel

·     Large frying pan

·     Spiraliser

·     Scissors

·     Citrus juicer

·     Serving bowls and smaller bowls for pangrattato

 

 

 

 

 Ingredients:

For the pangrattato:

·     1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

·     1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes

·     2 tablespoons olive oil

·     Half a small loaf of sourdough bread

·     1/2 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

·     1 lemon

·     3 sage leaves

For the salad:

·     3 zucchini

·     A small branch of mint leaves

·     3 tablespoons olive oil

·     100g Danish feta

·     Flaked salt

What to do:

For pangrattato:

  1. Break or tear the sourdough into small chunks and then blend up in the food processor until they resemble breadcrumbs. You’ll need about a heaped cup.
  2. Wash and wipe the lemon dry, then zest the lemon, taking only the thin layer of skin off and leaving the white pith on. Wash the sage leaves and gently press dry with a piece of paper towel. With scissors, snip into thin strips.
  3. Heat the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in the frying pan. Add the rest of the pangrattato ingredients and toss until golden and crunchy (this takes about 5 minutes). Taste and add more seasoning if needed. Set aside to cool and crisp up.

For zucchini salad:

  1. Wash the zucchini and wipe dry, then spiralise or julienne them into thin strips. Wash the mint, press dry with a piece of paper towel and using the scissors, snip them into thin strips. You should have about 2 tablespoons worth.
  2. Cut the zested lemon in half and juice one half.

To finish:

  1. Place zucchini in a dish, top with mint leaves, oil and the lemon juice and season with a grind of pepper. Check the seasoning and add a sprinkle of salt if needed. Weigh the feta and crumble what you need into the zucchini. Toss to combine and divide out into your serving bowls.
  2. To serve, top salad with a little of the pangrattato and serve the rest in little bowls on the side for each person to help themselves to, just before eating.

Notes: What does a heaped cup mean? How does a spiraliser work? What is pangrattato?

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French tomato tart

Posted on March 9, 2017 by melhm

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The simple tarte à la tomate is a favourite French dish that makes use of all of those excess ripe summer tomatoes in the kitchen. This classic recipe is without cream or eggs in the filling but just a little kick of mustard smeared over the free-form pastry base.

Fresh from the garden: tomatoes, thyme, oregano
Recipe source: adapted from a recipe on sbs.com.au
Serves: 4 or 24 tastes

Equipment:

  • Food processor
  • Measures: tablespoon, teaspoon
  • Plastic wrap
  • Mixing bowls – large, medium
  • Colander
  • Chopping boards and knives
  • Salad spinner
  • Large baking tray
  • Rolling pin
  • Serving plates
 Ingredients:

·       300g (2 cups) plain flour

·       150g cold butter, chopped

·       1 egg

·       1 tablespoon cold milk

·       2 tablespoons whoegrain mustard

·       A couple of heirloom tomatoes

·       250g vine-ripened cherry tomatoes

·       4 sprigs thyme, plus extra to garnish

·       4 sprigs oregano, plus extra to garnish

·       Olive oil, to drizzle

What to do:

For the pastry:

  1. Process flour, butter and 1 teaspoon salt in a food processor until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add whisked egg and milk, and process until a dough forms. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate while you wash the tomatoes.

For the filling:

  1. Wash all the tomatoes and drain in the colander. Slice the large tomatoes into slices.
  2. Wash the herbs and spin dry. Strip off the leaves and reserve.

To finish the dish:

  1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Roll out dough between 2 sheets of baking paper to form a 3 mm-thick round. Transfer to a large oven tray and remove top sheet of baking paper.
  2. Spread dough with mustard, leaving a 3cm border around edge.
  3. Arrange sliced tomatoes over mustard so they are overlapping, then top with cherry tomatoes. Pinch and fold over edge of tart, then scatter with thyme and oregano leaves.
  4. Drizzle with oil and season with salt and pepper.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is golden and crisp. Garnish with extra oregano and thyme sprigs.
  6. Serve cut into slices.

Notes: What is tomato in French? What does freeform tart mean?

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