Author Archives: The Cooking spoon

Pesto Knots with Garlic Butter

This has to be the best dinner roll of all times. Soft dough filled with pesto and tied in a cute little knot.

INGREDIENTS:
• 200 ml / 1 cup minus 2 tbsp. hand warm milk (you can use unsweetened soy)
• 42 gr. / 1.5 oz. fresh yeast
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 500 gr. / 1 3/4 cup Spelt flour (type 630) or all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 medium eggs at room temperature
• 100 gr. butter at room temperature
• 2 tbsp. Pesto
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tbsp. chopped parsley
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and grated

INSTRUCTIONS:
Bring the milk to hand warm temperature, either in the microwave or on top of the stove. Make sure it’s not to warm or you will kill the yeast.
Crumble in the yeast and the honey. Give it a stir and set aside. It will start to bubble up.
In the bowl of your stand mixer add the flour and salt and stir to combine. Make a well in the middle and add the butter, the two eggs and the milk mixture. Knead on medium for about 6 minutes. Add a little more flour if it seems too wet. It will be a sticky dough however.
Cover with cling film and leave to rise for thirty minutes.
Roll out the dough into a rectangle of about 35 x 45 cm / 14 x 16 ” , cut in half lengthwise and spread one tablespoon of pesto down the middle.
Roll each half into a long rope and cut each roll into 6 equal parts.
Shape into knots tucking the ends under, free style it because you can’t go wrong here
Leave the knots to rise for 10 minutes while the oven is heating up at 400 F / 200 C.
Heat the butter with the garlic in a small pan until melted. Add the parsley. Brush knots lightly with butter, avoid the parsley as best you can at this point because it might burn.
Bake for about 13 – 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with more garlic butter.

Serve and enjoy.
Myra XO

Coconut Lime Tempéh with Peanut Sauce and Banana Chips

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 block of tempeh, (16 oz. / 450 gr)
• 1 tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 shallot
• 2 garlic
• 1 tbsp. minced ginger
• 1 tbsp. green curry paste
• 1 tsp. sambal oelek
• 1 can coconut milk, preferably full fat
• About 1 cup water
• ½ – 1 tsp salt or fish sauce
• 1 tbsp coconut sugar, or gula java
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• A handful of toasted salted peanuts for serving
• A handful Banana chips for serving
• More lime wedges for serving

INSTRUCTIONS:

Start by cutting the tempeh in half and boiling it on medium heat for 5 minutes.
After this time, remove and set aside to cool.
When cool enough to handle, cut into large-ish chunks, about 1”/ 2.5 cm pieces.
In a large pan heat the coconut oil and add the tempeh. Frying on all sides for about 5 minutes. Remove to a plate and reserve.
Add the finely chopped shallot, garlic and ginger to the pan and cook gently until fragrant.
Add the curry paste and sambal and cook for one more minute. Carefully add the coconut milk, fish sauce or salt, coconut sugar, peanut butter and lime juice. Bring to a simmer.
Add the tempeh and cook for about 15 minutes.
Serve with on a bed of rice, with the toasted peanuts and coconut chips and more lime wedges.

Enjoy!
Myra XO

Mexican Corn Jalapeño Burger

5 Replies

Say Hola to the new Mexican Corn Jalapeño Burger. Yes, we are very excited about our Mexican Corn Jalapeño Hamburguesa. Wowsa…..
I basically put all my favourite ingredients in one place. Organic good quality meat, a 50/50 mixture of pork and beef. Taco seasoning and ground tortilla chips instead of breadcrumbs, and then topped with the best corn salad of your life! It’s made in minutes and can be eaten anytime.
I could easily have a bowl of this corn salad for dinner on it’s own it’s that good (and a little addictive if you ask me). It also adds an amazing crunch.
Off course there’s Avocado and Bacon involved, and cheese obvi. Melted cheese…
So lite up your barbacoa and grill some Mexican Corn Jalapeño hamburguesas.

Prep Time :10 mins
Cook Time :10 mins
Total Time :20 mins

Servings: 4

Ingredients;

• 1 lb / 500 gr ground beef/pork mixture
• 2 tsp. taco seasoning
• A dash of liquid smoke if you have it (optional)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup natural tortilla chips, ground fine
• 1 clove of garlic, grated
• 1 or 2 slices jalapeno from a jar, chopped (these babies are hot!)
Corn Salad:
• 2 ears of corn or one can, drained
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander
• 4 tbsp mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp sour cream
• Salt and pepper
• 3 green onions finely sliced
• Squeeze of lime (just a little)
For the Burger:
• 2 Avocados, sliced
• 4 lettuce leafs
• Sliced tomatoes
• 8 slices grilled bacon
• Salsa for the buns
• 4 buns
• 8 slices sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions;

1. If you are grilling outside, place the corn in the husks on the grill, close the cover and grill for 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes, or until kernels are tender when pierced with a paring knife. Otherwise grill on a griddle pan indoors or use a can of corn, drained.
Remove the husks and let cool a little before removing the kernels with a sharp knife by putting the corn in an upright position and sliding your knife down the sides.
Place kernels in a bowl and add the remaining ingredients for the corn salad. Mix and set aside.
For the burgers, place the meat in a bowl and add the ground tortilla chips, seasonings and egg yolk. Mix with your hands and form 4 patties.
Grill on medium high heat for about 4 to 5 minutes on each side until cooked through (you are using pork which cannot be consumed rare). Place two slices of cheese on each burger after the first flip.
Split the hamburger buns in half and toast lightly.
Spread salsa on both sides of the bun, place lettuce leaf on top, tomato slices, avocado, the burger, bacon slices and top with as much corn salad as you can. Place the top of the bun on top and insert skewer to hold it together.
You’re going to love this Burger, I promise but….Warning! Do not serve on a first date ’cause in can get a little messy.

Enjoy!
Myra XO

Roasted Red Pepper and Sun Dried Tomato Fettuccine

9 Replies

A quick Pasta dish, made in minutes. So simple and so good, I mean really, really good. The creaminess from the cashew nuts is so much better than any dairy cream I can think of and it’s also highly nutritious and actually good for you. So what’s not to love, it’s delicious, it’s quick, it’s nutritious, it’s pasta! And honestly, picky eaters are not even going to know they’re eating roasted peppers, win win if you ask me.

Ingredients;

1 lb. Fettuccine, preferably fresh
½ Cup sun dried tomatoes
1 Cup cashew nuts
4 whole roasted peppers from a jar
½ Cup dry white wine
2 cloves garlic
¼ Cup Parmesan cheese
More Parmesan cheese to serve (leave out for vegans)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Handful of Basil
Handful of toasted pine nuts to serve
About 1 – 1 ½ cups of water to thin the sauce.

Instructions;

Soak the sun dried tomatoes in a cup of water for a couple of hours.
And also soak the cashew nuts in a cup of water for a couple of hours.
You can do this the night before or early in the morning.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
Meanwhile place in a blender; drained sun dried tomatoes, drained cashew nuts, the roasted peppers, the Parmesan cheese, the garlic, white wine, about ½ cup of water to begin with and salt and pepper to taste.
Blend until creamy. Adding just enough water to get it creamy.
When the pasta is cooked al dente, drain and reserve a cup of the boiling water.
Return the pasta to the pan straight away and pour over the roasted red pepper sauce, adding enough of the water from the cooking to make it saucy.
Serve immediately with more Parmesan Cheese, toasted pine nuts and Basil.

Enjoy!

Myra Xo