Classic Style Crème Caramel

Ingredients

• 180 ml white sugar
• 75 ml water
• 500 ml full cream milk
• 10 ml vanilla extract or 15 ml essence
• 4 whole extra-large eggs
• 2 yolks of extra-large eggs

Method

For the caramel, heat 125 ml of the sugar and water over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves and starts to cook. Increase the heat and cook for a few minutes until it turns to a light golden colour. Remove from the heat and immediately pour into six ramekin dishes, swirling the dishes around to coat the base and sides and set aside.

Place the reserved 45 ml sugar, milk and vanilla in a saucepan and heat just to boiling point. Stir to dissolve the sugar and remove from heat.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs and extra egg yolks until they thicken and become pale yellow. Gradually add the milk mixture to the beaten eggs, stirring well. Strain the mixture through a sieve into a jug and pour it into the ramekins.

Place the ramekins in a deep baking tin and add enough boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Place the baking tin in the lower part of the oven and bake at 170°C for 40 minutes, or until the centres of the custards are firm. Do not allow the water to simmer during baking because if it does, the custard will have a grainy texture.

Remove the ramekins from the water and allow to cool. Once cool, place them in the fridge for a couple of hours to chill.

To serve, run a knife around the edge of the ramekins and invert onto small plates, adding some crème fraîche.

Serves 6

Sago pudding

I'm not a big pudding eater, give me a savoury tart any day, but I'm absolutely CRAZY about sago pudding (tapioca)! There's nothing like a freshly-made sago pudding, but I'll even eat the pre-made ones from the supermarket.

Here's a lovely recipe that I've done a couple of times, quick and easy.

Ingredients

• 125 ml tapioca 
• 550 ml milk 
• 80 ml sugar 
• Large pinch salt 
• 3 large eggs, separated 
• 125 ml cream 
• Cinnamon sugar

Method

Soak the tapioca according to the pack instructions then drain. When done, whisk together the milk, sugar and salt then add the drained tapioca. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly and carefully with a wooden spoon. The mixture will start to thicken so turn down the heat and continue to cook and stir for 20 to 30 minutes or until the tapioca is soft.

Whisk together the egg yolks and cream and stir into the mixture. Cook for a further minute then remove from heat. Beat the egg whites until stiff then fold lightly into the mixture preserving as much of the fluffiness as you can. Serve in bowls, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

Serves 6 – 8

Easy Strawberry Salad

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried minced onion

• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar  

Salad ingredients

• fresh lettuce leaves - chopped, washed and dried 
• fresh strawberries, halved
• cheese of your choice, I used Greek 

 Method

1. Whisk together the sugar, sesame seeds, sesame oil, poppy seeds, dried onion, paprika, oil and vinegar. Refrigerate until chilled.
2. In a salad bowl, combine the lettuce, cheese and strawberries. Drizzle with dressing, toss lightly and serve.

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Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

Ingredients
    •    1 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved lengthwise
    •    2 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
    •    1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
    •    1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
    •    2 sprigs thyme
    •    1 teaspoon salt
    •    Freshly ground pepper to taste
    •    1 teaspoons lemon juice (optional)

Instructions
    1.    Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
    2.    Wash and cut brussels sprouts in half if they are very small, otherwise cut into quarters.
    3.    Cook the sprouts until barely tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain.
    4.    Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring, until brown but not crisp, 3 to 6 minutes.
    5.    Remove with a slotted spoon to drain on a paper towel.
    6.    Pour out all but about 1 tablespoon bacon fat from the pan.
    7.    Add oil to the pan and heat over medium heat.
    8.    Add onion and cook, stirring often, until soft but not browned, reducing the heat if necessary, about 4 minutes.
    9.    Stir in thyme sprigs, salt and pepper.
    10.    Increase heat to medium-high, add the Brussels sprouts, and cook, tossing or stirring occasionally, until tender and warmed through, about 3 minutes.
    11.    Add the bacon, thyme leaves and lemon juice, if using, and toss.

From Cakescottage.com

Macaroni & Kaas met Spek

Een van my gunsteling disse, Macaroni en kaas. Daar is natuurlik baie verskillende variasies van hierdie resep, mens kan bylas en uithaal, maar ek vind hierdie een vinnig en smaaklik!

Bestanddele
3 koppies macaroni

3 eiers
3 koppies melk
2-3 eetlepels botter

3 koppies Cheddarkaas, gerasper

1 teelepel mosterd

1 - 2 tamaties, geskil en fyn gekap
1 pak Spek, in stukkies gekap
sout en peper na smaak

Metode
Braai die spek in ’n pan en laat dan afkoel
Kook macaroni tot gaar in sout water, spoel af met koue water.
 Voeg botter by die macaroni.


Klits eiers, melk en mosterd saam. Jy kan sout en peper (of Aromat) saam met dit meng na smaak.


Smeer 'n vuurvaste glasbak met botter en plaas ’n laag Macaroni daarin.
Plaas ’n lagie bacon en dan kaas bo-op die Macaroni en herhaal die lae totdat al die Macaroni en kaas klaar is (so 3 lae).

Gooi die melk mengsel bo-oor dit alles en bedek met gerasperde kaas.

Pak gekapte tamaties bo-op.
 Bak teen 180 grade vir 30 tot 40 minute of mooi bruin.

Delicious Coconut Milk & Lemon grass Rice

The secret to this delicious side? Coconut milk, ginger and lemongrass.

 

Serves 6

2 cups jasmine rice
1 cup canned coconut milk, stirred well
1 teaspoon salt
One 6-inch piece lemongrass, smashed
One 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and flattened
1 seedless cucumber, peeled and sliced into half moons, for garnish

1. Place rice in a sieve, rinse, and then wash in 3 changes of fresh water.

2. In a 2 quart pot with a tight-fitting lid, place rice, coconut milk, salt, lemongrass, ginger, and 1½ cups water. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a bare simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, keep covered, and let steam 10 minutes more. Fluff with a fork, discard ginger and lemongrass, and serve immediately, garnished with cucumber.

- Recipe from Organic Life

Souttert

Foro vanaf RSG

  BESTANDDELE :

3 snye brood (1½“ dik, korsies af)
6e. botter
3 k. melk
9 eiers
9 repies spek
4½ koppies gerasperde kaas
1 pk. Worsies, gesny
2 med. Gerasperde uie
Sout en rooi peper Ekstra (opsioneel… dit maak dit net lekkerder!)
250 g smooth cottage cheese / maaskaas ;-)
Feta kaas (soveel as jy dink)
Spinasie (‘n kooksel)

METODE:

1. Voeg melk en botter by brood en kook stadig tot sag
2. Braai eers spek en gooi dan worsies en uie by. Braai tot ligbruin.
3. Gooi alles bymekaar en meng goed.
4. Laaste geklitste eiers by.
5. Bak 35 min. by 350 grade F.

(Resep vir my gegee deur Elizabeth Kendall - dis volgende op my lys om te probeer!)

Indonesian vegetable salad

Enjoy this Indonesian salad of lightly steamed vegetables, with a creamy peanut sauce

Ingredients: 

1 medium potatoes (cubed)

1/2 medium carrot (slices)

1/4 cup green beans
1/4  cup shredded cabbag
e
1/4 cup bean sprouts

100g / 3.5oz tempeh (replace)

Sauce: 

1 Tbsp peanut butter

1 tsp soy sauce

2 tsp brown sugar

2 tsp fresh lemon or lime juice

1 Tbsp coconut milk (lite is fine, if you prefer or substitute water)

2 Tbsp water
Red chilli flake to taste

1/2 clove crushed garlic

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat until sauce begins to bubble and thicken.

Cut the tempeh into thin slices and fry in a little canola oil and soy sauce until crisp. Set aside.

Place potato in a steamer basket. Steam, covered, over boiling water for 5 minutes or until almost tender. Add beans and carrots. Steam, covered, for 2 minutes. Add cabbage and bean sprouts. Steam, covered, for 1 to 2 minutes or until cabbage just begins to wilt.

Arrange vegetables on a serving plate. Place tempeh over vegetables. Drizzle with peanut sauce, top with chilli and serve.

Recipe from VeganEasy

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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