Capsicum & Ricotta “Ravioli”

As we move into our new house in a couple of weeks (hurrah!), I’m gradually emptying out our freezer of bits and pieces. Last week, I wondered what to do with 16 wonton wrappers. I could have made wontons, but honestly? 16 wouldn’t have been enough. I wondered about wonton soup, which is a favourite of mine (using this broth recipe as a base), but not so much of my husband’s.

Eventually, I settled on making “ravioli”. I was conscious of how bland bought ones usually are (except the ones from Waitrose…man, I miss Waitrose), so tried to make these as flavoursome as possible. Even still, I think they could have done with more parmesan cheese and slightly more seasoning, so the quantities in the recipe below are what I should have used.

Capsicum & Ricotta Ravioli – serves 2-3

2 red capsicums, quartered and deseeded
200g ricotta cheese
3 spring onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3/4 c finely grated parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
16 wonton wrappers

Place capsicums under a grill, skin-side up, and grill until the skins are blackened. Remove from the oven and wrap in cling film for a few minutes before peeling off the skins. Finely chop the flesh.

Mix with ricotta, spring onions, garlic, parmesan and seasonings.

Place a heaped tablespoon in the centres of eight wonton wrappers; brush the edges of each with water and seal with the remaining eight wrappers. Make sure you press out any trapped air, and that the edges are well-sealed.

Cook, in batches, in a large pot of boiling water, for 5-7 minutes, until cooked.

Serve with the sauce of your choosing – I chose to serve these with my standard pasta/pizza sauce, topped with more parmesan cheese.

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Fun with Food
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Fun with Food: Pizza

Growing up, homemade pizzas usually meant one thing: mum would open the fridge and throw every conceivable pizza topping onto a thick base and smother it with cheese.

Ham, pineapple, mushrooms, capsicum in all the colours of the rainbow, olives, bacon, onion…I could go on. I don’t imagine that I’m the only one who grew up in a household where making pizza was all about packing as many toppings on as humanly possible??

Our first experience of “proper” pizza was in Sardinia. The bases were thin and delicious, topped with a basic tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and perhaps one or two other toppings. That was it.

The flavours were so simple, but so amazing; everything worked together, and you were able to taste and savour each flavour, instead of just tasting cheese. My favourite pizza was the San Teodoro (sauce, mozzarella, slices of eggplant), which I tried in the beautiful little village of Santa Maria Navarrese, the night we got engaged.

Since then, the way we make pizza has changed. I’m a huge fan of the “less is more” philosophy, and some of the nicest homemade pizzas we’ve had have been incredibly simple.

Our favourite combinations (always on a base of pizza sauce and mozzarella) are:

~ smoked salmon, cream cheese, fresh dill & lemon zest;
~ tomato & basil (commonly called the Magherita);
~ proscuitto & black olives, garnished with fresh rocket;
~ steak & blue cheese (sear the steak first, rest & slice thinly; add to the pizza for the last five or so minutes in the oven);
~ bacon, mushroom & brie;
~ sausage, mushroom & black olive (parboil the sausages first & slice thinly); and
~ pear & blue cheese, garnished with fresh rocket

What pizza toppings do you love? Are you a fan of the thin pizza base, or the fat pizza base?

(And in case you were wondering, yes, I was in a bit of cheese-induced discomfort after eating these delicious pizzas, but it was worth it. Oh, it was certainly worth it!)

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Fun with Food
Fun with Food is a way for you to share your foodie (mis)adventures with other people. You don’t have to be a superb cook, or produce Masterchef-quality plates of food; this will be a place to share new and favourite recipes, meal plans, cooking on a budget, lunchbox ideas, new products, kitchen successes and disasters (because we all have those!) and maybe some handy tips for getting fussy kids to eat their dinner!

The linky will open on a Tuesday and stay open for a week, so I hope you’ll share your kitchen adventures, and be inspired by what other people are doing in the heart of their homes.

Please copy and paste the button below and include it in your foodie post!
By clicking on the link below, you’ll be taken to an external page, where you can enter your link and see who else is linking up. Please take the time to visit them, too!

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Fun with Food: Old Favourites

I’m pretty sure that every cook has their favourite meals. You know, the ones that you make without a recipe, that are slightly different – but always delicious – each time. The meals that your family look forward to, scoff seconds of, hope for leftovers from.

Here, three such meals are macaroni cheese, lasagne, and Vegetable Pastry Squares.

Macaroni cheese is my ultimate easy, cheap dinner; I know Tiny will eat it, and I know Tall loves it. I love it too, despite my dairy-intolerant tummy’s protests. Sometimes I keep it simple, with just onion, bacon and dijon mustard added to the cheesey sauce, and other times I make this divine pumpkin and feta version. Regardless of what’s in the sauce, it is always eaten with buttered white bread…I knew Tall and I were meant to be when he made himself a macaroni cheese sandwich.

Good old beef lasagne is the favourite around here (although chicken versions and Roasted Vegetable Lasagna are also tasty), and I’ll go so far as to say I make an exceptional lasagna.

I start by sauteeing finely chopped vegetables (onion, mushrooms, zucchini, carrot, garlic), then add the mince and break it up, until mostly cooked. Then it’s in with my not-so-secret ingredients – lots of tomato paste (puree for my English readers, a lesson I learned in our early months living in the UK!) and a crumbled beef stock cube. Tomatoes (tinned or fresh), oregano, salt and pepper…then simmer simmer simmer for as long as possible. Day Two Lasagna is always better than fresh, so I make double what we need for one meal, and if I’m really on to it, I make the ragu the day before.

I’ve already waxed lyrical about the Vegetable Pastry Squares here; so good for using up sad leftover veges, or for when you want a big vegetable hit but don’t want a stirfry.

What meals are your family’s favourites?

Any meals you make into a sandwich that other people might think strange?? Any leftovers from this Slow-Cooked Pork with Apple Gravy make the best sandwiches…

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Fun with Food
Fun with Food is a way for you to share your foodie (mis)adventures with other people. You don’t have to be a superb cook, or produce Masterchef-quality plates of food; this will be a place to share new and favourite recipes, meal plans, cooking on a budget, lunchbox ideas, new products, kitchen successes and disasters (because we all have those!) and maybe some handy tips for getting fussy kids to eat their dinner!

The linky will open on a Tuesday and stay open for a week, so I hope you’ll share your kitchen adventures, and be inspired by what other people are doing in the heart of their homes.

(By clicking on the link below, you’ll be taken to an external page, where you can enter your link and see who else is linking up. Please take the time to visit them, too!)

Powered by Linky Tools

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Toddler Bites

It’s 4.30pm. Your two-and-a-half year old is starting to get tetchy, and you know that the Grumbly Tummy Monster is about to rear its ugly head.

Your brain goes into auto-mode. Pasta, you decide hastily. No, that’s what he had last night. Fish fingers? None in the freezer. Honey on toast? Hmmm.

This is a common scenario in our house, ever since Pickle arrived. He tends to need me right on Tiny’s dinnertime, and unless I’ve been organised enough to get something sorted earlier in the day, poor Tiny ends up eating pasta and pesto again.

So on one busy day when I managed to put Pickle down for half and hour, I rummaged through the fridge and freezer and created what Tiny has dubbed “Pastry Swirls”.

The combinations could be endless; anything you would put in a toasted sandwich, you could put in here. Have fun experimenting – your little one(s) will help you find the perfect combination!

Pastry Swirls – serves 1-2 little ones (or 1 little one and 1 adult who likes to snack while feeding aforementioned little one!)

1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry, defrosted
1T pesto
4 slices of shaved ham
1T crushed pineapple
2T cheese, grated or chopped

Preheat oven to 180degC fanbake.

Spread pesto evenly over the pastry, leaving a 2cm border at one edge.

Layer on ham, pineapple and cheese.

Wet the clear edge of pastry with a little water; roll pastry loosely to encase filling and place on an over tray.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until inner spirals of pastry are cooked through and the top is golden brown.

Stand for a few minutes before slicing; warn your child to be careful, as the filling will be molten-lava hot!

Dairy-free Meal Planning

This week, I’m making a concerted effort to go as dairy-free as possible. I’m lactose intolerant, and Tall had a dairy allergy as a child, so it’s most likely that the dairy in my diet is causing Pickle’s wind and vomiting.

Having gone dairy-free before, I know what my own system can and can’t handle. For instance, cheese and ice cream are definitely out, but a little bit of yoghurt or milk in the morning is okay. At the height of my restricted diet, I consumed no dairy whatsoever. It was tough, but I’m a creative cook, so I still managed to eat pretty well. However, now that we’re eating more and more meals with Tiny, I want to be able to sit down and enjoy the same meals as my boys, so I’m not going to be as restrictive as when it was just me.

However, I’ll be steering clear of family favourites like macaroni cheese and lasagne for a while, and Tall will have to eat all of the Whitestone Vintage Windsor Blue by himself. I’ll be back to ordering teas or long blacks at cafés, and I’ll have to satisfy my sweet tooth with something other than baking and chocolate.

But I’ll do it, because if it takes away Pickle’s discomfort, it will all be worth it. He had a very unsettled night on Sunday after I’d eaten ice cream for dessert; his screams of pain and the wee legs kicking about violently broke my heart, and I know it’s unfair to not do something about it if I can.

So on the menu this week, we have:

~ Thai chicken dumplings (last night’s dinner…I loved that the recipe was for pork dumplings but there was no mention of pork in the ingredients!

~ Mexican pork and beans (currently smelling divine in the slow cooker) – the tortillas I’ll serve it with contain dairy, but not much

~ Steak sandwiches – the ciabatta I bought probably contains dairy, but again, it won’t be a huge amount

~ Sausages, spuds and salad

~ Smoked salmon, potato salad and rye bread – might use a little mayo for my potato sala

~ Sticky pan-fried scallops with chilli rice

So far, I’m doing okay, but no baking is going to be tough!

Rocket Pesto

Would you believe that pesto is something I’ve made just a handful of times? Quite frankly, I’m astonished and more than a little ashamed of myself – we always have pesto in our fridge, yet up until now, I’ve been too lazy.

Which is ridiculous, really, given how simple it is to make.

This version is so easy, and a nice variation on the usual basil variety. I had a bag of rocket in the fridge which I’d forgotten about, and as its best before date was two days ago, I decided I’d better do something with it. That something…was rocket pesto.

Rocket Pesto – makes approx. 1 cup

3/4 bag of pre-washed rocket
1/2c freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/4c walnut pieces
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4c olive oil
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blitz until desired texture is reached.

Store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

* Use more or less olive oil, depending on your preferences, but I found 1/4c was about right.

* I like my pesto quite chunky and rustic, which is a good thing considering my crappy food processor doesn’t do a very good job of fine chopping.

* Add fresh herbs such as flat-leaf parsley or mint to add a bit of extra flavour.

* Tastes great stirred into cooked pasta with some roasted pumpkin and extra parmesan cheese.

Toddler Bites

For a toddler such as Tiny, who has two food-loving parents, the variety of foods he has been exposed to from a young age is vast. We started him on baby-led weaning at around seven months, and by 18 months, he was already showing a preference for smoked salmon, ciabatta, basil pesto and paté.

However, as an almost two-and-a-half year old, he has turned into a rather fussy eater, much to my chagrin.

He’ll eat fruit like there’s no tomorrow, and has been known to eat a mound of plain pasta on numerous occasions. He’ll eat roast pork, and risotto, and loves lasagne. He’s not big on vegetables but can be persuaded to eat broccoli, and will chow down on raw carrot if he can dip it in hummus or cream cheese. He’ll always ask for a “chocolate” (Nutella, or similar) or paté sandwich at lunchtime, and enjoys a good meal of fish and chips.

I’m forever trying to come up with meals we can share together, but the battles at dinner time make for an unenjoyable experience, and with a six-week-old thrown into the mix….let’s just say he’s been eating a lot of pasta-and-pesto lately!

Recently, however, I tried two new dishes which seemed to go down a treat. They were both easy and quick, used ingredients I usually have on hand, and could easily be eaten hot or cold – ideal when dinner can take a looooong time.

Mac and Cheese Bites

The first was inspired by Pinterest and Tiny’s love of macaroni cheese. I took my basic mac cheese recipe (bacon, cheese sauce, macaroni), and instead of baking it in a big dish like I normally would, I spooned it into medium-sized muffin pans. The cheese sauce held the macaroni together and the resulting bites were delicious and were easy for Tiny to eat with his hands (cutlery is soooo last week, didn’t you know? Yeah…me neither!), meaning less pasta on the floor, and more in his belly.

The second was inspired by a recipe in ‘River Cottage Baby & Toddler Cookbook’ called Helen’s Egg Parcels.

Eggy Bites

Eggy Bites – makes 12

4 eggs, lightly beaten
2T milk or cream
1t butter, melted
salt & pepper
50g ham, chopped*
half a zucchini, grated*
50g cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 200degC.

Lightly beat the eggs, milk and butter to combine; season according to taste (or omit if you prefer).

Pour the mixture into lightly-greased muffin pans, filling each about two-thirds full.

Sprinkle ham and zucchini over top, and finish with a sprinkle of cheese.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until puffed and golden. Cool in the pan for five minutes (they will sink down again).

Serve warm or cold.

* Leave out the ham to make these meatless, and add other veges for more substance. Finely chopped, cooked and drained spinach or mushrooms would be nice.

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Recipe inspired by: River Cottage Baby & Toddler Cookbook

Cheese Rolls: Southern Sushi

Anyone who grew up in the deep south will tell you that they make the best cheese rolls in the country. Recipes have been passed down through generations, cafes throughout the region promote their own “world famous” version, and you’ll always find schools and sports teams selling them by the dozen for fundraising.

Some “trendy” cafes try to get all sophisticated on the cheese roll, by adding gourmet cheeses or other ingredients, or using fancy bread. Cheese roll purists, like myself, will tell you that the best cheese roll has to be made using Maggi Onion Soup Mix and thin white bread.

Simple ingredients combine to create something amazing

When toasting these babies, *please* don’t be tempted to use a sandwich press! This will just squash the rolls down into flat, hard little bricks, and you’ll spend twenty minutes scraping the cheesy mixture off the plates of the press.

The best way to toast them is to pre-heat your oven grill to high, place the desired number of cheese rolls on a baking tray, and spread the top side with margarine or butter. Grill until golden and crispy, then turn, butter, and grill again.

Delicious served on their own, stacked high on a plate, or alongside a steaming bowl of tomato soup.

Crunchy, oozy and cheesy...what more could you ask for??

Last week I made a batch of these to pop in the freezer in preparation for when Pickle arrives. This recipe came from my nana, and personally, I think it’s the best there is!

Cheese Rolls – makes approximately one loaf of sandwich-slice bread + 4 slices

375ml can of evaporated milk
1 packet of dried onion soup mix
2c cheese, grated (I use either a tasty cheddar, or a simple edam – nothing too oily)
optional: 1-2t mustard (either powder or prepared)
1 loaf of white bread, preferably thin- or sandwich-slice

Heat evaporated milk and onion soup milk in a medium pan, over a low heat, until well combined.

Add cheese, remove the pan from the heat, and stir until the cheese is melted and the mixture is smooth. Add the mustard, if using, and stir well.

Spread approximately 1T of the mixture over a slice of bread, and roll into thirds.

Allow to cool on a wire rack before freezing or grilling.

Cheesy soldiers