Hi there everyone,

HAPPY NEW YEAR to you all.

Hope you are enjoying the warmer weather and longer days and survived the silly season unscathed.  It’s a great time to start eating outside and doing more gorgeous salads (much to the MAV’s dismay!).  This week was a real winner.  It’s not often I get all elements coming up roses, however, this week I did.  It was such a simple menu too.  The lamb fillets were available at my Woolworths butchery so that made it easy and economical and of course, a simple pesto can be whipped up very quickly.

Do hope you will treat your family to this menu.  Until next week…..

From my table to yours with love.x

Lamb Fillets with Creamy Pesto

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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 4 Lamb racks (six cutlets in each) Or just purchase the fillets already removed from the bone
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 15 g butter
• 1 c basil leaves firmly packed
• 1 clove garlic crushed
• 1/3 c pine nuts toasted
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/4 c parmesan cheese grated
• 1 c thick cream

Method

 

1. Carefully remove the long piece of meat in each rack without cutting through bones; discard bones. (Or just buy the fillets). Heat oil and butter in baking dish, add lamb, cook over high heat until lamb is browned all over. Bake, uncovered, in moderate oven for about 10 minutes or until lamb is cooked as desired; cover, stand 5 minutes before slicing. Serve lamb fillets with creamy pesto.
2. Blend or process basil, garlic, pine nuts, oil and cheese until well combined. Combine basil mixture and cream in pan, simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Notes

Source: Women's Weekly Dinner Party Cookbook No. 3 Pg. 95

Summer Salad with Zesty Tahini Dressing

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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 225 g block of halloumi (sliced) or use fetta
• 120 g baby spinach
• 140 g strawberries sliced
• 200 g butternut pumpkin cubed and roasted
• 175 g broccoli florets lightly steamed
• 140 g lentils tinned is fine
• 1 avocado sliced
• 1/2 c walnuts roughly chopped
• few springs coriander
• 1 tbsp avocado oil or olive oil
• 1 lemon juiced
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 4 tbsp water
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 tsp himalayan salt or rock salt
• pinch black pepper

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Toss the butternut in the oil in a bowl and season with salt and black pepper. Arrange on a baking tray and roast in a preheated over for 25 minutes, until lightly brown and tender.
3. Lightly steam the broccoli florets for a few minutes until they start to turn bright green, remove from steamer and set to one side to cool slightly.
4. To make the dressing, place all the ingredients into a blender and pulse a few times until it reaches a smooth consistency. You can add more water here to loosen it up.
5. In a pan on medium heat, add a small amount of avocado or olive oil and fry the halloumi if using. Otherwise crumble the fetta.
6. Next start to layer the salad. Take a large serving dish and add the spinach, lentils, broccoli, butternut, sliced strawberries, sliced avocado, halloumi (or fetta). Drizzle over the tahini dressing and then add the walnuts and coriander. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

Source: Delicious Magazine December 2019 Pg. 143

Field Mushrooms Gratin

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Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 8 large field mushrooms
• 1/3 c oil plus extra to drizzle
• 50 g unsalted butter
• 1 tbs finely chopped sage leaves plus extra to fry
• 125 g sourdough breadcrumbs
• 200 g taleggio cheese 100g roughly chopped the rest sliced
• 1 egg lightly beaten

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 200°c
2. Place mushrooms, stalk-side up, in a 7 cup capacity ovenproof dish. Drizzle over the olive oil and season to taste.
3. Heat butter in a medium frypan over high heat. Add the onion and chopped sage and cook stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes until onion has softened. Transfer to a large bowl. Add breadcrumbs and mix to combine. Add the chopped Taleggio cheese and egg, season and stir to combine. Spoon mixture evenly among mushrooms and season.
4. Roast fro 15-20 minutes until starting to turn golden on top. Place a slice of Taleggio over the top of each mushroom, return to the oven and roast for a further 10-12 minutes until cheese is melted and golden. Drizzle over extra olive oil and scatter over fried sage leaves to serve

Mango Roulade with Raspberries and Elderflower

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Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 4 egg whites
• 3/4 c caster sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp cornflour
• 1/2 tsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 c double cream
• 1 1/2 tbs elderflower cordial
• 3 tsp rose water elderflower and rose water cordial are available at woolworths - it saves buying two things just reduce the quantity you use
• 5 g freeze-dried raspberries roughly crushed (I used all fresh)
• 1 ripe mango peeled and thinly sliced
• slivered pistachios and fresh raspberries to serve

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 160°c. Grease a 26cm x 28cm x 3cm cake pan and line with baking paper.
2. Place egg whites and a pinch of salt in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk on medium speed to just before medium peaks. With the motor running, add 125g sugar, 1 tbs at a time, whisking until sugar has dissolved (this takes 3-4 minutes) and egg white mixture is thick and fluffy. Add cornflour, vinegar and vanilla extract, whisking briefly to combine. Meanwhile, combine remaining 40g sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Working quickly, spread mixture evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over meringue. Bake for 14 minutes or until meringue springs back when gently pressed.
4. Remove meringue from the oven place a clean tea towel over the top, then a chopping board, and invert the pan onto the tea towel and chopping board. Carefully lift away pan, then baking paper. Cover and stand at room temp until cooled completely - about 15 mins.
5. Place cream, elderflower and rose water in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk and whisk to medium peaks (be careful not to over beat)
6. Spread cream over meringue, leaving a 2cm border at the shortest and furthest from .Scatter over dried raspberries (or fresh). Place sliced mango evenly, lengthwise down the centre third of the cream. Roll up from the other short end by lifting the tea towel to ease the meringue into a roll. Transfer to a tray and chill for 30 minutes or until ready to serve.
7. Remove tea towel and transfer roulade to a serving platter. Scatter over pistachio, and raspberries to serve.