Pancakes with Cinnamon sugar

Image from Rainbow Cooking

Ingredients
    •    1 litre water
    •    2 teaspoons salt
    •    1 cup oil
    •    4 teaspoons white vinegar
    •    8 eggs
    •    4 cups flour
    •    1 teaspoons baking powder mixed with 2 teaspoons luke-warm water

Cinnamon Sugar
2 cups caster sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Instructions
Mix everything together, beating well to ensure there are no lumps. Allow to stand for 15-20 minutes covered.

When you are ready to bake the pancakes, mix the batter again and if it’s too thick, add a bit more water. It needs to be quite thin, only a little thicker than pouring cream.You’ll see if you bake the first few if the batter is too thick, the pancakes need to be very thin and almost lace-like.

Heat the pan and spray with cooking spray and add 1 teaspoon of oil.

Add ladle-fulls of the batter to the pan and allow to cook before flipping. Keep the pancakes warm on a plate set over a pot of simmering water.

When you're ready to serve, sprinkle some of the cinnamon sugar over the pancakes and roll up.

Serve with fresh lemon wedges.

Quinoa Tabouli on Pita Bread

I found this lovely recipe for Quinoa Tabouli, a beautiful light summer lunch, on Vegan Easy's page on Facebook.

Ingredients:
- 1 cup quinoa
- 4 tomatoes
- 2 bunches parsley
- 1 bunch Mint
- 4 lemons
- 2 spring onions
- Olive oil to taste
- Salt and pepper

Method:
Cook quinoa as per instructions on pack (1 cup quinoa to 2 cups water, bring to boil, lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes), I do this in my rice cooker. Allow to cool.

Chop tomatoes, parsley, mint and spring onions and mix through cooled quinoa. Juice lemons, pour over and mix through tabouli. Add olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Eat on and with everything in the house for as long as it lasts!

If you don't know what Quinoa is (I didn't), Wikipedia says:

"Quinoa (/ˈkiːnoʊ.ə/, from Quechua kinwa or kinuwa ) is a species of the goosefoot genus (Chenopodium quinoa), a grain crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It is a pseudocereal, similar in some respects to buckwheat, rather than a true cereal, as it is not a member of the true grass family. As a chenopod, quinoa is closely related to species such as beetroots, spinach and tumbleweeds. As a member of the Amaranthaceae family, it is related to and resembles amaranth, which is also a pseudocereal. After harvest, the seeds must be processed to remove the coating containing the bitter-tasting saponins. The seeds are in general cooked the same way as rice and can be used in a wide range of dishes. The leaves are eaten as a leaf vegetable, much like amaranth, but commercial availability of quinoa greens is limited."

I don't know if it is available in South Africa, but I will definitely be looking for it!

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Cowboy Steaks and Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Prep time : 5 mins.
Cooking time : 15 mins.

Serves: 2

 

Ingredients

• 2 Fillet Steaks
• 2 tsp coffee grounds
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried onion powder
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Instructions

1. First, preheat a 10” cast iron skillet over high heat.
2. Once the pan is hot enough that you can only hold your hand a few inches from the surface for a few seconds, turn the heat down to the medium.
3. Meanwhile, combine the coffee grounds, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders.
4. Rub this mixture very generously on the steaks, including the sides.
5. Once the pan is hot and the heat has been turned down to medium, add the vegetable oil to the pan.
6. Carefully tilt the pan to coat it evenly.
7. Add the steaks and do not move them for at least 5 minutes.
8. Have a meat thermometer handy.
9. After 5 minutes, flip the steaks. Depending on how you like your steaks, cook them another 4-9 minutes. I used a meat thermometer to ensure 140-degrees for medium.
10. When the steaks are 5-degrees below your ideal range, remove them from the pan and wrap in foil. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Oven Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Prep time : 5 mins
Cooking time : 16 mins.
Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, cleaned, trimmed and sliced in half
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 teaspoons steak seasoning

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400-degrees.
2. On a half-sheet pan, add the Brussels sprouts, steak seasoning and olive oil. Toss everything with your hands to coat.
3. Roast the sprouts for 13-16 minutes, checking towards the end of the cooking time.
4. Serve immediately.

Recipe from Dessert for Two

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Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Fry Sauce

This recipe from Creme de la Crumb

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Buffalo Cauliflower Bites with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce

Image credit Mark Boughton Photography

• 6 to 8 servings
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Cook: 25 minutes

Ingredients

Cauliflower Bites

1head cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets

1tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

Freshly ground black pepper

1teaspoon garlic powder

1/2cup hot pepper sauce

1tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

 

Blue Cheese Dip

3/4cup whole milk Greek yogurt

1 green onion, finely chopped

1/4cup crumbled blue cheese

2tablespoons mayonnaise

2teaspoons cider vinegar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F; line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread cauliflower in a single layer on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Bake 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven, sprinkle with garlic powder, toss and bake 10 minutes longer.
2. Stir together hot pepper sauce and butter in a small bowl. Pour over cauliflower and toss.
3. For blue cheese dip, combine yogurt, green onion, blue cheese, mayonnaise and vinegar. Stir well. Serve with cauliflower. Serves 6 to 8.

 Recipe from 'Relish'

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Broccoli, Grape, and Pasta Salad

Serves: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

• ½ cup chopped pecans
• 8 ounces pasta of your choice
• 3 cups finely chopped broccoli florets
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ cup red wine vinegar
• ⅓ cup diced red onion
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups seedless red grapes, cut in half
• 6 cooked bacon slices, crumbled

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecans on baking sheet and toast in oven for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring half way through.
2. Prepare pasta according to package directions, cooking to al dente. Drain pasta and place in a large bowl.
3. In a medium bowl combine mayonnaise, sugar, red wine vinegar, red onion, and salt. Whisk well.
4. Add broccoli and grapes to the large bowl with pasta. Gradually add mayonnaise mixture (you may not want to add the whole amount).
5. Cover and chill for 3 hours. Stir bacon and pecans into salad just before serving.

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Pasta with Basil, Tomatoes, Red Pepper and Baby Marrow and chicken (optional)

A delicious, light and nutritious summer dish, quick and easy to prepare.
Serves 4

Ingredients:
250 grams pasta of your choice
4 de-boned and skinless chicken breasts chopped into cubes (optional)
4 medium-sized baby marrows, sliced
4 large tomatoes, diced
1 large red pepper, chopped
1 chopped onion
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
½ cup chopped fresh Basil, or more if you prefer.
3 tablespoons of coconut or olive oil
2 Chicken stock cubes (optional)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Method:
In a large saucepan, sauté the onions in the oil for a couple of minutes over a medium heat. Add the chicken cubes or water and cook for another 3 minutes before reducing the heat and adding the garlic, red pepper, tomatoes and baby marrow. Allow to simmer gently without a lid, stirring occasionally.

Cook the pasta to your liking in salted water, drain and add to the sauce. Lastly stir in the Basil and turn the heat off. Allow the pan to stand for a few minutes to incorporate all the flavours before dishing up and garnishing with a sprig of basil.

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Variations: This recipe is most versatile and can also be made using beef; and for those who like it spicy, cayenne pepper or chilli can be added.

(This recipe from "Gardening in South Africa")

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Cucumber salad

With warmer days looming just around the corner here in South Africa, it's time to put all those lovely cucumbers you've planted to use! The benefits of cucumbers are legendary (you can read more here) and they are so easy to prepare. So here's a lovely quick and easy cucumber salad to spice up your life.

1 cucumber
10 black olives
2tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 spring onions
½ lemon
½ fresh red chilli
5 or 6 sprigs of fresh mint

Run a fork down the length of the cucumber all around it, then halve and quarter it lengthways and cut the quarters across into 1cm (½in) chunks. Put them into a mixing bowl and set aside.

Drain 10 black olives, squeeze out their stones, and tear them into another bowl. Pour over 2tbsp balsamic vinegar and push down on the olives, so the vinegar starts pulling out their saltiness. Trim and finely slice 3 spring onions, then add to the olives.

Drizzle 4tbsp of extra virgin olive oil and the juice of ½ a lemon into the olive mixture and stir really well.

De-seed and finely slice ½ a red chilli and add to the bowl of cucumber. Pick the leaves from the sprigs of mint, finely slice them and add to the cucumber. Pour over the dressing, toss quickly, drizzle over a little more extra virgin olive oil and take to the table and enjoy!

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Macaroni Cheese with bacon

Ingredients
Serves: 4 - 6

• 4-5 rashers streaky or back bacon
• 30g butter 
• 225g macaroni pasta
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 340g grated Cheddar cheese

Sauce

• 475ml milk
• 2 fresh farm eggs 
• salt and pepper 

Prep: 10min
Cook: 35min
Ready in: 45min

Method

Preheat oven to 180 C / Gas 4.

Chop bacon into bits and place bacon in a frying pan. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown.
Drain, crumble and set aside.

In a large pot with boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente. Drain.
In a medium frying pan, sauté the chopped onion and garlic.
Take off heat and add chopped cooked bacon and set aside.

To make the sauce, break the two eggs into the milk, add salt and pepper. Whisk well until all the egg is mixed in.

Place half of the cooked macaroni into a 2 litre baking dish (remember to slightly oil it first so that the macaroni doesn't stick to it). Sprinkle over half of the Cheddar cheese and half of the chopped bacon, onion and garlic. On top of that, place the other half macaroni and bacon mix and cover with the rest of the cheese. Gently pour over the egg and milk mixture and, if required, sprinkle some more grated cheddar over the top.

Bake uncovered in preheated oven until cheese on top is melted and brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
Serve warm.

Of course you can vary the recipe by adding mushrooms, spring onion or any of your other favourites.

Enjoy!

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French-style Omelette

Ingredients
• 10 ml cold, hard butter, cut into small dice
• 3 large farm-fresh eggs, beaten lightly
• A little olive oil
• A little extra butter
• Salt and freshly milled black pepper
• 65 ml grated cheese
• 15 ml torn basil
• 45 ml tiny tomato dice
• Serves 1  

Method
Stir the diced butter into the beaten eggs. Add an extra nugget of butter and a little oil to a pan and place over heat. When the pan is warm, pour the egg mixture into the pan and cook briefly on medium-high heat, about 20 seconds. Turn the heat lower and with a small spatula start to gently push the mixture away from the sides of the pan while tilting the pan so that the uncooked egg can run onto the surface of the pan. Continue doing this until the egg is no longer runny, yet still creamy and moist.

Season to taste and then sprinkle with the cheese, basil and tomato dice. Fold two of the sides of the omelette towards the centre and continue to cook for a few seconds longer to warm the filing. Tilt the omelette pan almost upside down over a serving plate and allow the omelette to slide onto the plate. Garnish and serve immediately.