Category Archives: Food Blog

Harvest Pumpkin Salad, baked Halloumi and Chantherelles with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette.

I’ve got Pumpkin on my mind. Everywhere I look I see pumpkins, everything I read seems to be about pumpkins and now I can’t stop thinking about them So rather than fight it, I’d better embrace it.

No, in all seriousness I love pumpkins and I am very happy with the vast amount of Pumpkin recipes going around . In magazines, on tv and online. I have come up with a few myself and this is the first one. I had it for dinner tonight and it was so satisfying and delicious I couldn’t wait to share it. Usually I am not a fan of just having a salad for dinner because I get hungry after about an hour. But it has been two hours since I had my dinner and I think I am going to be ok until breakfast.

This salad does have a few steps to prepare but then again it is a dinner substitute so there is some work and cooking involved. But fun work….promise. And it is so pretty and delicious you could easily serve it for an informal dinner party with some freshly baked bread.

Serves 4

Ingredients for the salad;

1 lb roast pumpkin cubes
2 bags of lettuce mix, about 8 oz.
4 oz. of canned lentils, drained
Traditional Halloumi Cheese, 7 oz
14 oz. Chanterelles, gently wiped clean
1 large red onion, peeled cut in half and into slivers
1/3 C. Parsley leafs whole
1/4 C. dried Organic Cranberries, soaked for at least 30 minutes
1/2 C. Bacon in smallish dice, (omit for vegetarians)
1/2 C. Maple candied All Natural Roasted Pecans (Unsalted)
Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette
Roast pumpkin cubes;
Pre heat oven to 350 ° F/ 180 ° C
1 lb. fresh cubed Pumpkin, peeled and seeds removed
1/4 tsp. pumpkin spice mix
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. sweet smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. Himalayan salt
2 tsp. olive oil

Toss everything together and place on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Roast for 20 minutes. Toss pumpkin half way thru cooking.

Remove from oven and let sit at room temperature.

Maple candied Pecans;

1/2 C. All Natural Roasted Pecans (Unsalted)

2 tbsp Maple Syrup

Toast the pecans in a dry frying pan for 2 minutes until pecans smell toasted. Add the maple syrup and cook for two more minutes, until syrup has reduced and all is sticky and deep golden brown. Transfer the pecans to a plate covered with parchment paper. Immediately separate the pecans with two forks. Let cool completely.

Warning: Caramel of any kind gets extremely hot so do not touch with your fingers or taste it!!!

Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette;

2 tsp. prepared Dijon mustard
4 tsp. Maple Syrup
3 tbsp. Thick Balsamic Vinegar
6 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper

Whisk the first three ingredients together until well blended and slowly add the olive oil until emulsified. Add a salt and pepper.

Before we start with the chanterelle and Halloumi it is time to prepare the salad plates first. Or salad platter, which ever you prefer. Place like this

1 Salad leafs

2 onion slivers

3 roast pumpkin cubes

4 lentils

5 parsley leafs

Now back to the chanterelle. Heat a frying pan over high heat and add the bacon dice, cook over moderate heat until really crispy, remove from pan and set aside in a small bowl.

Remove some of the fat from the pan if necessary and put it back on the heat. Add the chanterelle and cook on high heat for about four to five minutes until golden brown. Remove to a plate and put the pan back on the heat. Add the Halloumi slices and bake in a dry pan for about 1 and a half minutes on each side until crispy and soft.

Divide the chanterelle carefully over the salad, scatter with the bacon and add the baked Halloumi slices. Decorate with the maple candies pecans and cranberries and serve straight away with the Maple Balsamic vinaigrette.

Not quite what you were looking for? How about Endive Gratin with Baked Apples, Blue cheese and Thyme

Moroccan Meatballs with Quinoa

18 Replies

Serves 4

We went to Marrakech once , and the food, the market, the people, the smell…….was so enchanting like nothing else I had ever seen before. I fell in love instantly with the sweet and savoury cuisine.

I have been making these meatballs ever since. I make a lot of other Moroccan dishes too but this one is by far the quickest and easiest.

Ingredients;

1 lb. lean ground lamb or beef
1 onion peeled and chopped fine
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, peeled and grated
1 tsp. himalayan salt or regular
ground black pepper
1 egg yolk
1/4 C. (home made ) dried breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp. Ras el Hanout , see Ras el Hanout. for spice mix recipe
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. ground dried ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
2 tbsp. fresh chopped coriander plus 1 tbsp. for serving
3 tbsp. chopped pistachios (dry toasted briefly in a pan). Reserve one tablespoon to sprinkle over before serving.
4 dried apricots chopped

For the sauce;

1 tbsp. tomato puree
1 14 oz. can chopped tomatoes, or 5 to 6 fresh ones chopped
1 tsp. beef stock powder
1 tbsp. honey
3 tbsp. orange juice plus 5 tbsp water to make 1/2 cup in total

Method;

In a large frying pan add 1 tbsp. of the oil and cook the onion and garlic gently for about 5 minutes on medium low heat until slightly beginning to turn golden. Add all the spices and remove from the heat to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, add the minced meat the onion and spice mix, the breadcrumbs, egg yolk, salt, pepper, 2 tbsp. pistachios, chopped coriander and apricots. Mix with your hands and form into golf ball sized meatballs.

Wipe your frying pan and add the remaining oil. Set heat on medium high. Fry all the meatballs until nicely browned all over and remove to a plate. Work in batches if necessary.

Once you have cooked all the meatballs. Start making the sauce in the same frying pan with the remaining oil in it and add the tomato paste and fry for 30 seconds then add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer, add the meatball back to the pan and simmer with the lid half on the pan, for about twenty minutes.

Meanwhile make the Quinoa.

For the Quinoa;

1 cup (dry) quinoa
2 c. chicken or beef stock
2 tbsp. chopped pistachios (dry toasted briefly in a pan)
1 c. chickpeas drained
6 dates, stone removed and chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
1 tsp. garlic powder
ground pepper
2 tbsp. chopped coriander

Place quinoa in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse thoroughly under running water. This is to remove the saponins that taste very bitter.

Did you know that saponins are for protection against insects?

Put quinoa to a medium saucepan. Add the stock, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and add the dates, carrot, garlic powder, chickpeas and pepper. Just before serving add the coriander and the pistachios.

Note: some quinoa only takes ten minutes to cook, so check the package instructions!!!

To serve place the quinoa on one side of a large platter, the meatballs and sauce on the other side. Sprinkle with more pistachios and chopped coriander.

Not quite what you’re looking for? How about these Meat Balls ?

Gratin Dauphinois with Gruyere.

3 Replies

Ingredients;

2 lb /1 kg starchy potatoes

1 garlic clove peeled and sliced in half lengthwise

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

grating of nutmeg

Freshly ground pepper

1 C. cream

1/2 C. chicken stock

1 C. grated Gruyere cheese

Method;

Preheat oven to 350F/180C.

Bring cream, chicken stock, nutmeg and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Once it reaches a boil, turn off the heat and let it steep while you make the rest of the gratin.

Rub a baking dish with the cut garlic, then spread with the butter.

Peel the potatoes and slice them thin.

Place half of the potatoes in the dish, then scatter over cheese.

Repeat for the second layer, finishing with the cheese.

Pour over the cream.

Cover with lid or foil, and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for a further 10 until the top is bubbly and golden. Rest for 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with some chives or parsley before serving.

Another great fast side dish would be Super quick pan roast Jacket Potatoes.

Chorizo Burger, Balsamic Onions and melted Manchego.

13 Replies

I can get so excited about hamburgers, you have no idea. I can think about it all day, day dream about it and talk about it. I try not to but I would love to, honestly.

I figured since Autumn is here I would just slip in one last Bbq-ed Burger. The weather has been surprisingly mild here in Holland so far, so I haven’t really made the mind swap to fall foods yet. I don’t really eat as many Burgers in autumn and winter. It just seems more like a summer food to me. So…

I came up with this burger because I am crazy about chorizo. You don’t need a lot of chorizo to get that super delicious smoked paprika flavour . I have used the dried chorizo because it’s the only one we can get here. It worked very well. Especially with the sticky balsamic onions.

Ingredients Chorizo Burger;

1 lb ground beef, organic if you possible
4 oz. dried chorizo, skin removed
1 onion, peeled and cut in four
1 garlic clove, peeled and grated
1/2 tsp. salt
a good grinding of black pepper
1 tps. smoked paprika (spanish preferably)
1 egg yolk *
1/4 C. fresh bread crumbs
1 tbsp. chopped parsley
Extra:
1 small zucchini, sliced
Roast red peppers from a jar
4 thick slices of Manchego
4 Hamburger Buns

* I never use egg white in a burger because it makes it rubbery.

Ingredients Balsamic Onions;

1 tbsp. olive oil
4 large onions, peeled and sliced medium thick
4 tbsp. coconut blossom sugar or brown sugar
3 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar, the darker the better

Method Chorizo Burgers;

Cut the chorizo in small bits, put them in a food processor together with the onion and garlic and blitz a few times until small. Put the beef and the remaining ingredients in a bowl. Add the chorizo and onion mix to the bowl as well. Mix and form into 4 patties.

Put a griddle pan over the heat. Grill the burger for about 4 minutes on each side. Put the manchego cheese on the burger as soon as you flip them over.

Grill the slices of zucchini alongside the burgers.

Method Balsamic Onions;

Heat a small frying pan and add the olive oil. When medium hot add all the onions, cook for 10 minutes of medium low heat. Add the sugar and cook another 5 minutes until dark and sticky. Finally add the balsamic vinegar and cook for an other two to three minutes until slightly reduced.

To assemble the burgers. Toast the buns, on the bottom layer a piece of grilled pepper, then 4 slices of grilled zucchini, then the burger and then top with loads of sticky glazed onions. Serve with fries and sauces of choice. I served my burgers with Aïoli.

Not quite what you were looking for? How about Deluxe Beef burger filled with Onions and Crispy Bacon, topped with Gouda