A winter salad

This salad is for anyone who wants feels like a mid-winter raw vege hit but doesn't want to pay $8 for a squidgy red capsicum and its out-of-season friends. (Yes, capsicums are roughly $8 a piece at the moment, I don't know this because I bought one myself but because I know someone who actually paid $8 for a single capsicum last week.)

I was inspired to make mayonnaise after reading this post here on the Kitchenmaid blog which has lots of fabulous DIY recipes for the kind of things you'd usually buy - bread, tahini, mayo etc. Once I had my mayonnaise made I needed a use for it so added a little smoked paprika and thinned it down with the juice of half a lemon and used it as a dressing for this red cabbage, carrot & spinach salad.

This salad is a lot like one we make with red cabbage, apple & celery with smokey mayo (from Dunedin-based cook/food writer/tour guide Judith Cullen) but with spinach and carrot instead of celery and apple. You could add a julienned green apple to my version below if you want a little sweetness.

I guess it's more a "coleslaw" that a salad but I'm calling it a salad as I can't stand the word coleslaw. Especially when it's mispronounced "coldslaw"! Either way, it just doesn't sound like something I want to eat. But salad, especially this salad, I do want to eat. And have done so for the last two nights.

The quantity below would make a big bowlful - enough for 6-8 servings - and use the entire amount of mayonnaise. Adjust as necessary to feed the number of people at your table.

Red cabbage, carrot & spinach salad with smokey mayo

1/2 red cabbage, very finely shredded

1 bag baby spinach

2 large carrots, julienned (or grated)

2-4 tablespoons finely chopped mint and/or flat-leaf parsley

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped

1 quantity of mayonnaise with 1/2 tsp of smoked paprika & juice of 1/2 a lemon whisked in.

Toss the finely shredded cabbage, spinach & cabbage in a large bowl. Mix though the smokey mayo, just half at first and then add a spoonful at a time until the vegetables are lightly coated. Save a little to dollop on top if you like. Sprinkle over the walnuts and serve.

dinner date - pumpkin, feta and brown rice tart

The other week it was just my sister Sarah and I for dinner (who is vegetarian) so I made this tart for our dinner. This is an old favourite of ours, the original recipe featured in the Healthy Food Guide many years ago, and we adapt it according to what veges we have on hand. This time we filled it with broccoli.

The crust is made by mixing cooked brown rice with mashed pumpkin and crumbled feta, so tastes similar to a risotto cake. The exact quantities are not really important, so use more or less of the crust ingredients depending on what you have available (just not too much pumpkin or the crust will be a bit wet.) I like to make the crust quite thick and substantial. Likewise for the filling, just use whatever veg takes your fancy...

To cut down on prep time I tend to cook extra rice when we are eating it for another meal, and freeze it and do the same when I am cooking pumpkin. This makes it faster to whip up on a weekday and you use hardly any dishes. It is really delicious. Topped with a spoonful of tomato chilli jam and served with a crunchy green salad it made a very tasty dinner and lunch the next day.

Pumpkin, brown rice and feta tart

crust

4 c cooked brown rice
2 c cooked pumpkin - roasted/steamed/boiled and roughly mashed
1 pkt feta
1 egg

filling

4-6 eggs, beaten with salt and pepper to taste
1 head of broccoli, chopped and cooked
(or use about 2 c of any other cooked veg that takes your fancy)
Parmesan

Preheat oven to 180c.

To make the crust, combine all ingredients and press mixture into a 25cm loose bottom cake tin that has been lined with baking paper. Or a quiche dish would be fine too.

Bake for 30 minutes until the crust dries out a little. Fill with the cooked veges and pour in the beaten eggs. Grate Parmesan over and bake at 180c for another 45mins or until set.

Cool slightly and enjoy warm or at room temperature.

the MOST delicious cake

This Chocolate, Orange and Almond cake is one of my new found favourites. The recipe was emailed to me last year by my friend Anna, who had enjoyed it at a work morning tea courtesy of a colleague. I was impressed by her rave review, and baked the cake that very evening. I then forwarded the recipe to Libby who did the same, so within a few days the cake was enjoyed in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch! Since then it has been made many times and has found a place in all our baking repertoires.

It is a variation on the ever popular flourless Orange and Almond cake, that those adhering to a gluten free diet are probably sick of the sight of...however the addition of some dutch cocoa and a layer of dark chocolate ganache take this recipe to new heights. It is moist, light and nutty, rich but not too sweet, as it contains whole oranges. This is the sort of cake that makes the kitchen, and indeed the whole house smell utterly delicious while it bakes. It is incredibly easy to make, being blended up in the food processor; the only forethought required is the precooking of the oranges. Often I will boil two extra oranges, puree them and freeze to use the next time I make this cake.

Everyone who tries it seems to love it, and will probably ask you for the recipe. The recipe is from Nigella Lawson.

Chocolate, Orange & Almond Cake

2 oranges (thin skinned)
6 eggs
200g ground almonds
250g castor sugar
50g dutch cocoa
1 tsp (heaped) baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Put the whole oranges in a saucepan, cover with water and simmer for around 2 hours or until soft. Cut into quarters, and blend (skin, pulp, pith and all) to a fine pulp in the food processor. Add the eggs, followed by the remaining ingredients. (I like to roast whole almonds and blitz them in the food processor, I think the texture is much nicer and nuttier this way than using preground almonds.)

Pour cake batter into a 25cm cake tin that has the base lined with baking paper, and bake at 180c for around 45 minutes. Cool in the tin, then pour over chocolate ganache. This is quickly made by heating 150ml of cream in the microwave until nearly boiling, then adding 150g chopped dark chocolate, stir to combine until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth. Leave ganache to cool a little, so it will thicken slightly and be easier to pour or spread over the cake.