Serves: A picnic
Prep: 10 min
Cook: 0 min

Ingredients:
2 handfuls of rocket
1 cup of macadamia nuts
1 loose handful of flat-leaf parsley
2 cloves of garlic
150g of pecorino (or Parmesan /Romano)
¼ cup of extra-virgin olive oil

1. Roughly chop the rocket, parsley and garlic then grate the pecorino to make blitzing it easier.
2. Place all ingredients into a bowl and blitz.
3. Eat with crackers, as a condiment or stir into pasta and serve.

This dish was for Mikey’s new housie home making.

Serves: us
Prep: 15 min
Cook time: 0 min

Ingredients:
1 red char grilled capsicum **
1 can of chickpeas
½ lemon juice
1 clove of garlic
1 modest handful of coriander (fresh)
1 table spoon of tahina
1 lug of olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste (paprika if you like)

1. Make your own char grilled capsicum or buy it. I constantly make my own, but must say it is my most hated cooking food/method. Hate it!
2. Take the capsicum and all other ingredients and blend – leave a few coriander leaves for decoration.
3. Serve with slithers of carrot, capsicum, green beans, cucumber, celery, bread or crisps.

Ingredients:
Lug of olive oil
1 Large onion chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 tspns of groud coriander
2 tspns of ground cumin
Pinch of chili powder
½ kilo of sweet potato peeled and diced
½ kilo of carrots sliced
6 cups of veggie stock
A can of chicpeas drained
½ lemon juice
Bread to serve

1. Sweat onions and garlic on a medium heat. Add coriander, cumin and chili stirring through for about a minute until the aromas emerge.
2. Add vegetables and stir for several minutes stiring regularly.
3. Add veggie stock and bring to the boil reduce and cook for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
4. Allow to cool and blend.
5. Return to the saucepan to cool and season with salt and pepper. Add lemon juice and serve.

I’ve written this recipe up with a smidge less cumin than I made it – but I just must say it is creamy, sweet and luscious.

Warning: Sieve needed.

Serves: 3 for entre
Prep: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min

Ingredients:
4 roasted ears of corn
1 tablespoon of olive oil
3 medium/smallish zucchini
2 small red chilli
3 cups of vegetable stock
1 tsp of garam masala
Sprinkle of cumin
½ cup of milk
Salt and pepper

1. Rub down the corn with salt pepper, some olive oil and chilli
2. Roast the corn ears until golden brown along with the zucchini
3. Slice the kernels off the cob
4. Place roast corn and zucchini in a saucepan with the veggie stock and bring to the boil. Simmer for 30 minutes
5. Pass contents of the pot through the sieve to separate out the corn skins and discard
6. Return to the pot adding the garam masala, cumin and milk. Warm and serve with crumpets!

Serves: 6
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
2 punnets of strawberries
1.5 cups of white wine
1 cup of sugar
.5 cup of water
1 star aniseed
1 cinnamon bark

1. Top the strawberries and chop in half.
2 Pop all ingredients into a saucepan and bring to the boil
3. Simmer for 30 minutes
4. Blend and refrigerate until cool
5. Serve cold

Optional: You may wish to strain to remove the seeds and roughage. I think it is fine without it. However, if you allow to sit long enough the soup separates in two. By skimming the roughage off the top you get a clearer soup as shown below.

Because I didn’t eat all of it at the time – the remainder was frozen, turning it into this great sorbet sort of thing. Frozen strawberry soup tastes lovely. I think this soup could also have very easily be turned into jelly.

Beetroot Dip with Mint

Serves: Many
Prep: 40 min
Cook time: 1hr

Ingredients:
3 medium beets
2 cloves of garlic
1 small tub of yogurt
2 tablespoons of mint

1. Lob the top off the beets.
2. Place beets into a pot of boiling water and boil until soft (aprox 25 minutes)
3. Allow to cool.
4. Wearing gloves (so the beets don’t stain) rub of the beetroot skin
5. Roughly chop the beetroot and add to the bowl along with the yogurt
6. Blend until roughly smooth.
7. Add mint and stir

Roasted Eggplant Dip

Serves: Many
Prep: 40 min
Cook time: 1hr

Ingredients:
2 large eggplants
Juice of one lemon
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tahini
Spring onions to decorate (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 200°C
2. Place the eggplant on a grease paper lined roasting tray and cook for 40 minutes. Turn once during cooking.
3. Set aside to cool so that you can handle them comfortably.
4. When cooled, peel the skin away and discard. Leaving the filling in a bowl.
5. Combine with the rest of the ingredients and blend.

Makes: About a cup and a half
Prep: 10 min
Cook time: n/a if you used them tinned.

Ingredients:
1 can of chick peas (ceci)
2 large desert spoons of tahini (sesame paste)
1 clove of garlic
Juice of one lemon
Salt and pepper to taste

Serve on the same plate as the main for a nice change

1. Crush the chick peas with a fork
2. Add tahini, crushed garlic, lemon juice and taste
3. You can always add more lemon or garlic for more bite as well as salt and pepper to taste.

Lasts about a week.

Serves: Many
Prep: 10 min

Ingredients:
2 small tubs of yogurt
3 Lebanese cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 handfuls of mint finely chopped
1/2 lemon juiced

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Make ahead of time and refrigerate, giving time for the flavors to develop.
3. Serve with bread, crackers and dipping vegetables.

Serves: many
Prep: 5 min
Cook: 5 min

Ingredients:
500g of feta
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
A few good lugs of olive oil
1 small handful of oregano leaves
4-5 peels of lemon (using a potato peeler)

1. Heat the turmeric and paprika in a warm pan until you can begin to smell the fragrant spices.
2. Add olive oil, oregano and lemon peel and cook until the oregano just starts to become crisp.
3. Allow to cool. Place the feta onto a serving plate and pour the fragrant oil on top. Serve with crackers and bread.

Serves: Many
Prep: 10 min
Cook time: 1hr

Ingredients:
500g chicken liver
100ml of brandy
2 tablespoons of butter
1 finely chooped white onion
1 garlic clove chopped
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary
1/3 cup of cream

1. Trim chicken livers chopping away any fat, vein or discolouration.
2. Melt the butter in a frying pan and add the onion and garlic cooking on a low temperature until soft and transparent. Don’t over cook or brown.
3. Add the livers and cook for a few minutes on either side.
4. Add the brandy and chopped herbs, cook off for a few more minutes so that the flavors evaporate and soften.
5. Remove from heat and cool. The liver should be slightly pink on the inside once done.
6. Process in a blender until smooth. Add the cream and wiz for another second.
7. Season the pâté with salt and pepper and place into a serving dish.
8. Cool in the fridge for an hour or the freezer for 20 minutes.
9. Heat enough clarified butter to cover the surface of the pate to seal. This will ensure that it is able to be kept longer before eating.