Lentils

This dish was invented while I was living in London. At the time I had a French flatmate, Fabian. I had never really known anyone French before, and Fabian and I used to cook each other dinners quite a lot, and I was inspired by his... Frenchness, for lack of a better word. Anyway, lentils suddenly came onto my food radar as something kind of glamorous when cooked in a French (or at least what I imagine to be French) style. Its pretty simple, but I really think its one of my favourite things to eat, and has been a staple ever since. It also featured quite heavily while I was going through my anaemic stage, as lentils are kind of a miracle food in terms of iron.

1 cup French (de Puy) lentils

water

1tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced in half moons

2-3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp fresh thyme

¼ cup fresh continental (flat leaf) parsley

1 tbsp butter

extra olive oil, for drizzling

salt and pepper

Put the lentils in a small saucepan, with enough water to cover, and bring to the boil. Simmer until soft, making sure there is enough water and adding more if necessary.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium-low heat, and add the onion. Cook, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes, making sure the onions are not burning or cooking too quickly. You want them to soften, and get slightly brown but not crispy. Add the garlic, and turn the heat down, and leave for a further 5 minutes. Make sure the garlic doesn't burn.

When the lentils are cooked, drain, if necessary, and stir through the onion and garlic, herbs, butter, extra olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

Serve with salad, and green beans or something equally French.

Its really not the most attractive dish in the word, but it is pretty good......

Barramundi Tacos (or burritos)

This is based on a recipe for Swordfish Tacos from my Mexican Cookbook by Jane Milton, but as usual, because I'm terrible at following directions, I changed it. Firstly I used Barramundi, which was probably farmed. I have heard debate about the difference between the taste of farmed and fresh Barramundi, and I have to admit that fresh Barramundi is LOVELY, but I think in this instance, it doesn't really matter.

300g Barramundi, cut into chunks

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, sliced into half moons

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 jalapeño (or however many you can or can't handle)

1 tsp ground cumin

¼ tsp ground coriander

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp Chilli powder

3 tomatoes

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan (preferably one with a lid) and add the onions. Sautee for a few minutes and then add the garlic and chili, being careful not to burn.

While you are sauteeing the onions, score the bottoms of the tomatoes, and then cover them with boiling water. After a few minutes, take them out, peel and chop them.

When the onions are soft, add the herbs and spices, and the tomatoes. Put the lid on and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the Barramundi, and put the lid back on. It will only take a few minutes for the fish to cook. Once it ic cooked, season, and stir it to break up the fish pieces a little. Throw in a handful of coriander and you are done!

Serve with corn tortillas (for tacos) or flour tortillas (for burritos) and whatever salsas and toppings you like - I had avocado, pico de gallo, and yogurt.

Blackened Fish

Its been a while... But I'm back!!
This post I am adding as an afterthought, almost, as you will notice by the fact that the food that I photographed is half eaten. If you don't notice that, well, that just means I am a good photographer. But I was eating this for dinner with my mum tonight, and remembered HOW GOOD it is and just had to put it up.
Anyway, I first remember having this dish when I was about 8 years old, and we had moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts while my dad was going to Uni. We used to go to this restaurant called Legal Seafood, which in my mind was very fancy. We would go there and my mum, dad, sister and I would split 2 mains between us. I think we would always start off with New England Clam Chowder which was SO GOOD, and then move onto the main, which was usually Blackened Bluefish. It took me quite a while to realise that this dish was NOT called Black and Blue Fish, as though the fish had been bruised. I couldn't understand why anyone would want this as it sounded so unappetising, and I also couldn't understand this name because the fish wasn't blue. But I would always eat it, with a baked potato and side salad (or half of it anyway).
Anyhoo, a few years later I somehow realised what the actual name of the dish was, and that it is a pretty basic Cajun style dish. I still don't really know what bluefish is. I also came to realise that Legal Seafood expanded and went from being a Boston institution to being just another chain restaurant. How disappointing.
I will share one more memory and then I will tell you the recipe. I remember going to eat at Legal Seafood on New Years Eve*, probably in 1984. My sister and I were wearing our new dresses that our mother had just made and given us for Christmas, which were a cream satin top with a gold lamé bubble skirt. They were pretty awesome. I wish I had a photo, because if I did, I would soooo post it right here.

Spice Rub
2 tbs sweet paprika
2 tbs salt
2 tbs garlic powder
1 tbs black pepper
1 tbs onion powder
1 tbs cayenne
1 tbs dried thyme
1 tbs dried oregano

Mix all ingredients together. This will make quite a lot, but store it in a jar and it will keep for ages.

Rub a bit of oil on your fish and coat them with the spice rub. I would suggest a firm fish - I think it goes especially well with tuna steaks. I suggest about a teaspoon of spice per side.
This is best cooked on a barbeque, as it can smoke a bit. Heat your BBQ to a medium high heat, and cook you fish for a few minutes each side until they are done to your liking.
Serve with lemon wedges, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, and salad.

*I have been informed by my parents that it was not New Years Eve but Christmas Eve, and more importantly that MY MOTHER HAS THE BUBBLE DRESS IN HER POSSESSION. I will post a photo at the nearest opportunity.

Pizza!!!

Before

After

This was always on my I-have-to-add-that-recipe-ASAP list. Everyone who I went to high school with, I'm sure has had this pizza at least once as it is my mum's recipe. And the story of its creation goes something like this. My parents and baby sister (well, she's my older sister, but she happened to be a baby at the time) arrived in Australia on the 7th of May, 1975. The soon moved to the thriving metropolis of Coonabarabran (just kidding about the metropolis bit - there weren't even any traffic lights there) where they discovered that things that they had taken for granted in the USA, like Ketchup, fresh vegetables in the winter, and Pizza simply did not exist there. Necessity is the mother of invention, and so the pizza journey began. It evolved over many years to become the masterpiece that it is today. So the only other thing that I will say, is that you will REALLY benefit from making this using a pizza stone. And if you do that, you will need a pizza peel as well. The stone cooks the pizza from the bottom, making it more like a pizza that has been cooked in a pizza oven and makes the crust really nice. This is a weekend meal, mainly because it takes so long to make. It's not difficult at all, just time consuming.

CRUST
1 cup warm (not hot) water
2 1/4 tsp of dry yeast
OR
1 packet of yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups wholemeal flour
1 1/2 cups white flour
A pinch of salt

Dissolve the yeast in the water.
Mix together the flours and salt in a bowl. Add the yeast mixture and olive oil. I use a mixer with dough hooks - its a lot faster, but you can also do the whole thing by hand. Combine the mixture until it all comes together and continue kneading with the dough hooks for about 5 minutes. You want the dough to be smooth and elastic, not sticky. Be prepared though, even using a mixer (unless you have a Kitchenaid or heavy-duty mixer like that) this will give your arm and shoulder a pretty good workout. Once you have achieved smooth elasticity, form the dough into a ball, coat in a bit of olive oil, and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Make sure its a fairly big bowl though, because at this point you are going to leave it to rise until it has doubled in size. The amount of time this takes will vary depending on the temperature, but ideally it needs to be warm and moist. If its not warm, you can put a cup of water into your microwave and zap it on high for a minute. Then put the dough into the microwave and shut the door. DON"T TURN THE MICROWAVE ON THOUGH!!!
Once it has doubled in size, use your fist to punch it down. At this point you can make the pizza if you are pressed for time, but the crust will be nicer if you leave it to rise once more until it has again doubled in size.
Meanwhile, you can make the sauce.

SAUCE
2 x 400g tins of tomatoes
1 x 170g tin of tomato paste
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tsp dried basil
pinch of black pepper

Put all the ingredients into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer, and remove the lid a bit, so that some of the steam can escape. Let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for about an hour, or until it has thickened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a bit.

ASSEMBLING THE PIZZAS
Preheat your oven to hot, and put your pizza stones in so that they can get nice and hot. Punch the twice risen dough down to get rid of all the air. Divide it into three equal sections (you can really make as many as you want, but 3 seems to work pretty well). On a floured surface, roll out each of the sections into circles until they are about 30cm in diameter. I find it easier to put the base onto a piece of foil that has been dusted with flour. This makes it easier to get in and out of the oven, at least for me, because I am sot so skilled with a pizza peel. Brush the base with about a tablespoon of olive oil, and spread with a few good handfuls of grated mozarella. Then put about a third of the sauce on top of the cheese and spread it evenly. I know, it seems weird to put the sauce on top of the cheese, but its really nice that way. If you think it is too weird, you can do it the other way around. I am no pizza nazi.
Load it up with whatever toppings you want - bocconcini, sundried tomatoes, roasted eggplant, pepperoni, whatever! I still think the best is a plain pizza, just mozarella and sauce with some fresh basil and oregano and some finely grated parmesan.
Put the pizza on the pizza stone in the oven for about 6 or 7 minutes, then check it, and rotate it if it seems to be cooking unevenly. Leave it in there for another 5 minutes or until the crust if golden and the bottom is cooked (you can lift up a corner and have a peek. Cooking times really depend on your oven, so its probably just best to keep an eye on it and approach it with a trial-and-error attitude the first few times, until you can figure out what works best.
Remove from the oven, cut into wedges and enjoy!

Bubby's BBQ Sauce

Bubby

My grandmother on my dad's side was a Jewish lady from New York. In my memory, she was kind of like a milder version of 'The Nanny'. This may have something to do with the life-sized frog necklace that my sister inherited from her when she passed away. So I always find it funny that this recipe for barbecue sauce, something that I always kinda associate with rednecks, beer, and the South, actually comes from her. IT IS AMAZING. And I have to add, Mel, this one is for you.

2 onions, finely diced (in a food processor is the easiest)
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp dry mustard
3 tbs vinegar
1 cup ketchup
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 cup water
1/2 tsp hot paprika or cayenne*
1 tsp Mexican chili powder
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Sauté the onions in the olive oil until soft. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for 30-35 minutes.

Ideally, serve with barbecued chicken, or traditionally with pork ribs. For a real American BBQ, have it with potato salad, corn-on-the-cob, and cornbread. It actually goes really well with tofu - but if you choose the tofu option, it is best use firm tofu and to freeze and then defrost the tofu before using it. This way it looses the mushy texture and becomes more meat-like. This sauce will keep forever in the fridge!

*This is VERY IMPORTANT - if you are trying at all to recreate the sauce from my BBQ circa January 2009, I only used about 1/8 tsp of cayenne. Adjust it to your tolerance. I realise that my tolerance to chili is unusually high, and I do remember being younger and really struggling to eat this even though it TASTES SO GOOD so I just kind of kept going. And eventually I ended up where I am today, they chili maniac that I am. So adjust the amount of cayenne according to your own taste!!!

Zeidy, Bubby, Tandarra, Sheldon and Kim

Spaghetti Sauce

This is my version of my mum's Spaghetti Sauce, which she invented when she was about 12 years old. Her mum passed away when she was 9 and she was left in charge of her dad and little brother. I have changed it a bit over the years, but its more or less the same. It still tastes best when my dad makes it and I'm not quite sure what he does to it to get it like that.

1 medium sized onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic (depending on your taste), minced
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1 small tin of tomato paste
or
2 heaping tablespoons of tomato paste
1/4 c. water
2 tins of tomatoes

Sautee in a pan with the olive oil over medium heat. When the onion is soft, add the garlic. Don't let the garlic burn - it tastes gross. Add the basil and oregano, and then the tomato paste and water. Turn the heat down low and let it simmer for 5 minutes, making sure not to let it burn.
Add the tins of tomatoes, bring to the boil and then turn the heat down. Leave the lid slightly off and simmer for as long as you possibly can - the longer you leave it, the better it will taste. If you used whole tomatoes, mash them with a potato masher once it has been cooking for a while.
Serve it with fresh basil and oregano and parmesan cheese!