Author Archives: The Cooking spoon

Parpadelle Puttanesca with Lemon Pangrattato and fried Halloumi

Parpadelle Puttanesca with Lemon Pangrattato and fried Halloumi

This is one of our favourite Summer dishes. It’s easy, quick to make and FULL of flavour. Thick noodles covered in Puttanesca sauce,topped with fried Halloumi and sprinkled with a generous amount of lemony Pangrattato. Most of the ingredients are pantry staples.

Serves 4

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cooking time total: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Pangrattato

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs made from stale bread if you have it, otherwise fresh is fine
2 tbsp. thyme leaves
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

Pasta Puttanesca

16 oz. 400g Parpadelle or Fettucine
1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, smashed
4 anchovy fillets, chopped
1 (28-oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/2 c. green olives, pitted and sliced
1/4 c. capers
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
Chopped parsley, for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

To make the pangrattato;

Heat 1/4 cup oil in a pan to medium heat and cook the breadcrumbs until crisp and golden, about 4 minutes . Remove from pan and stir through the lemon zest, thyme and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Start boiling water in a large pot (don’t forget to add a generous amount of salt once boiling) while you make the Puttanesca sauce. Also slice Halloumi and drain on kitchen paper.

Heat a large frying pan and add the 1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil, the 3 cloves of smashed garlic, the 4 anchovy fillets, stir for a minute or two until fragrant. Then add the remaining ingredients and simmer for about 5 – 10 minutes until tomatoes are soft.

Heat a non stick frying pan to medium high heat and fry the Halloumi, cooking it on both sides until very golden brown.

Cook the pasta according to package directions.

Drain the pasta, reserving a little of the water, and return the pasta to the pan. Add the Puttanesca tomato sauce, parsley and enough reserved water to loosen and toss to combine.

Place Pasta in a large serving dish, top with Halloumi and sprinkle with the Pangrattato. Serve straight away.

Enjoy!

Need more pasta inspiration?

Salted Peanut Caramel Bars

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Salted Peanut Caramel Bars

This one is for all the candy bar lovers out there. Make them at home and don’t feel guilty about it, you totally deserve it. Besides, they’re pretty healthy.
With a crispy cookie-like base and heaps of gooey salted peanut-laden caramel, these bars are three layers of WOW!
Yep, three layers of WOW, that’s right! It’s a sweet-and-salty lover’s dream come true.
You need to make these at least once in your life, or twice or a hundred times, who’s judging?
I can tell you one thing, our self-control was taken to test, we had a hard time not scoffing them down all at once.

INGREDIENTS:

COOKIE BASE:
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 1/3 cup oats
• 1/2 cup shredded dry coconut
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
CARAMEL PEANUT FILLING:
• 1/3 cup rice syrup
• 1/2 cup coconut cream (fat on the top of a can of coconut milk)
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
• A pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup lightly salted peanuts
CHOCOLATE TOPPING:
• 3.5 oz (100 gr) dark chocolate bar, chopped
• 1 tbsp coconut oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

COOKIE BASE:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 8-inch square pan with greased foil or parchment paper with overhanging sides.
2. In a food processor, combine all the ingredients for the crust and pulse until fine crumb. Test by pressing some “dough” between your thumb and index finger, when it sticks together, it’s ready for the next step. Press evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Prick all over with a fork
3. Bake until edges are golden and center is set, 15 minutes. Let cool completely.

CARAMEL PEANUT FILLING:

1. Add the rice syrup, coconut cream and peanut butter to a heavy bottomed pan and cook over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, until very thick. Add the vanilla and stir. Let it cool a little bit. Sprinkle some peanuts over the cookie base, then spread the caramel evenly on top and sprinkle with more peanuts. Let it set in the freezer for 20 minutes before finishing with the chocolate layer.

CHOCOLATE TOPPING:

1. In a medium saucepan over medium low heat melt chocolate with coconut oil until smooth. Immediately poor chocolate over the top of the bars, using a spatula if needed to spread it out evenly. Chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes until filling and topping are set
2. Use overhanging foil or parchment to lift bars out the pan, and slice as desired. Bars are best stored in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Myra

More Bars to make:

Passion Fruit and Blood Orange Ponzu Salmon Poke Bowl

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Seriously delicious POKE Bowls!

You can indulge in these hearty bowls of healthy goodness without any feeling of guilt. They’re simpleto make and very delicious.

Fun fact: Poke (pronounced POKE-AY, not POKE-EE), began with fishermen seasoning the cut-offs from their catch to serve as a snack. Traditional Poke seasonings have been influenced by Japanese and other Asian cuisines. These include soy sauce, green onions, and sesame oil. Others include furikake which is a mix of dried fish, sesame seeds, and dried seaweed, chili pepper, limu (seaweed), sea salt, inamona (roasted crushed candlenut), fish eggs, wasabi, and onions. Other variations of poke may include raw tuna and various kinds of shellfish.

This here is my version and of course, with my personal twist. I have added some tropical sweetness to give the Salmon extra Aloha flavour.

serves 4
INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb. sashimi grade salmon cubed into 3/4 inch pieces
• 3 cups steamed white jasmine rice
• 1 cup Spinach
• 1 cup shredded purple cabbage
• 1 cup sliced cucumber, lengthwise
• 1 cup carrot ribbons
• 1 Nori sheet, cut into little strips
• 4 green scallions cut into sticks and sliced lengthwise but not all the way thru, like little brooms.
• small bunch cilantro
• 2 avocados cut in half, skin removed and sliced thin
• 1 blood orange, sliced for decorating
• 1 lemon, quartered for decorating and serving
• 2 tbsp. toasted black sesame seeds for sprinkling on top.

For the dressing:
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
• 4 tbsp. blood orange juice
• 1 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tsp. Ketjap Manis
• 1 passion fruit pulp
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and grated
• 1 – 2 teaspoons fresh ginger grated

INSTRUCTIONS:

Make the dressing. Place the salmon in a bowl. Cover the salmon with the dressing and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for a few hours, or up to 6.
Soak scallions in a medium bowl of cold water until they begin to curl, about 10 minutes. Drain and shake dry.
Cut the cucumber into ribbons and roll up.
Cut the peeled carrots into ribbons too.
Place Rice in a bowl, and basically add all the ingredients one by one, adding the salmon last, drizzle on some of the marinade.

You could also make a “Poke Bar” and let each person make their own bowl.

Enjoy!
Myra

Broccoli Salad

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With Summer on its way, it’s great to have lots of salad recipes on hand. This Broccoli salad is so colorful and fun to make, and obviously fantastic to eat. The great thing about this particular salad is that you can even make it a day in advance, it holds up really well, making it perfect for Bbq’s and Picnics.

It’s very simple to make, start by soaking the cranberries in warm water.
Then you caramelize the pecan nuts with the butter and sugar.
As these cool, you steam the broccoli florets for just 3 minutes in the microwave. You rinse them under cold water and drain.
The rest of the ingredients are then added and tossed with the delicious simple dressing.

⏰ Prep time : 15 minutes
🍝 Cooking time : 15 minutes
🍴 Serves : 4 as a side dish or 2 as a main course

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large head of Broccoli, cut into florets
• 1/2 cup of pecans
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter
• pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup pomegranate arils, reserve some to scatter on top before serving
• 4 oz. chopped cooked ham
• 4 oz. grated aged cheddar, coarsely grated or finely chopped
• 2 tbsp. chopped chives
• 2 tbsp. chopped parsley, (1 tbsp. goes in and the other on top)
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• a good squeeze of lime juice
• 2-3 tbsp. milk
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Start by soaking the cranberries in warm water.
2. Then heat a small pan on medium heat and melt the butter. Add the Pecans, salt and the tablespoon of sugar.
3. Keep stirring until sugar is caramelizing and the nuts are golden.
4. Transfer to a plate lined with a piece of parchment paper and make sure to separate the nuts or they will form clusters.
5. Steam the broccoli florets for three minutes, rinse under cold water and drain very well.
6. For the dressing mix the sour cream, mayonnaise, milk, lime juice, sugar and season with salt and pepper.
7. Drain the cranberries and pat dry with kitchen paper.
8. Toss all the remaining ingredients over the broccoli and mix carefully.
9. Add the dressing and toss again.
10. Place all on top of some salad leafs on a big platter to serve.
11. Sprinkle with the pomegranate arils and some parsley.

ENJOY!
MYRA