I don’t hate many foods, and will try just about everything. One food I don’t like however, is beetroot. I’ve never been a fan; I was the kid picking beetroot out of things because tastes like dirt (it wasn’t me being picky either; it turns out it’s a thing).
There have been a few times I’ve happily had beetroot in something though, one was a ginger-beet juice I made a while ago, and the other is the red velvet smoothie bowl I’m sharing today.
Because of the beetroot, my expectations for this smoothie bowl weren’t very high. I thought I was going to get something instagrammable that tasted like shit. I really wanted to try it on the off-chance that it didn’t taste horrible as hell.
Obviously it was good; I wouldn’t be posting about it otherwise, I would have just pretended it never happened. I’ve even gave some to Phillip to try; he isn’t a smoothie fan, but said it was better than expected, which is a win in my book
If you decide to give to this a try, let me know what you thought.
Cooking has been a great way to revisit foods I hated as a child. Corn fritters were one such food.
I didn’t start off hating them, in fact, I loved them. After they appeared on our plates every day for a week though, the novelty wore off. This may be an exaggeration but, I never wanted to see another corn fritter in my life. This is why, now, when I plan I plan meals, I try to have at least three different meals worked into the week. Variety is the spice of life people!
Obviously, I decided to try corn fritters again, otherwise, I wouldn’t have a recipe to share today. I’m glad I did, because these are amazing; they definitely make up for the lack of corn fritter in my life.
We’ve had them twice, so far. This time around, they were served with a thoroughly unhealthy salad (so much maple syrup). I’ll share the recipe for the salad with you if I make again (sans goat cheese; it turns out Phillip REALLY hates goat cheese).
If you guys decide to make these, let me know what you think.
Add corn, egg yolks, rice flour and baking powder to a medium bowl. Mix gently until just combined.
In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form; fold into the corn mixture, with the red and spring onions.
In a medium frying pan, heat some oil and add 1 tablespoon of batter per fritter. Cook fritters for about 1 - 2 minutes on either side (they should be a little puffed and starting to colour before flipped)
Today, I’m sharing a recipe for strawberry lemonade with you. When I first head about this stuff, it sounded magical and whimsical. I knew right away, it was something I had to try. I’m glad I made it too, because it’s fucking amazing and I’ll definitely be making it again. Continue reading →
Something has happened to me since moving to Auckland. I don’t know what it is; but, I have been recycling more, turning vegetable scraps into stock and making my own preserves.
I meal plan, and we spent our weekends driving around doing the grocery shopping. I’ve also started growing vegetables and herbs on our balcony.
For today’s post, I wanted to share the recipe for some strawberry jam I made the other day. I always thought jam was hard to make, but it turns out it’s super easy (it’s also fucking delicious).
If you try this recipe, let me know how it goes. It would also love to know if you make jam/marmalade and what your favourite fruits to use are (I’m thinking of trying apricots next).
Add strawberries and sugar to a large saucepan and bring to a medium heat. Stir constantly until the sugar has dissolved (at this point you can mash the fruit with a potato masher or a spoon).
Once the sugar has fully dissolved, increase the heat to a medium high temperature and bring to the boil. Boil for about 5 - 10 minutes, until the jam has reached 105˚C on a preserving thermometer***
Once ready, pour the hot jam into sterilised jars using a metal funnel, and seal with sterilised lids (we sterilise ours by placing them into the oven and heating them up in the oven beforehand****)
Recipe Notes
* About 445 ml
** If using frozen strawberries, make sure to defrost them before use. Learn from my mistakes!
*** If you don't have a thermometer, to see if the jam is ready, while it is still on the boil, use a teaspoon to place a bit onto a small plate. Leave it for about 30 seconds, then push the jam with your finger. If it doesn’t flood to fill the gap it's ready. If not, keep it on the boil and repeat this step after every minute or so, until it has set.
**** Pouring hot jams into cold jars will cause the jars to crack/smash, if you want to pour the jam into cool jars, bring the jars and the jam down to room temperature.
First of all, these tostadas are pretty messy. If you’re not keen on getting food all over your fingers, make tacos instead, they should be just as good.
A few weeks ago Meatless Monday ended up being a meatless week. On Tuesday, I made some vegetarian black bean tostadas which I served with a coriander dressing. They were fucking amazing.
I’m definitely going to be trying these again, the next time I make them I’ll add spiced shredded chicken to see what they’re like.
if you decide to make tostadas you can make your own, or buy them pre-made like we did.
Here is the recipe – if you decide to try it, let me know what you thought.
For the dressing, place all ingredients In a small food processor or blender and mix until smooth. Set aside
Add a little oil to a large pan and once heated add the onion. Cook tuntil translucent then add the corn and cook until it is slightly brown.
Add the tomatoes, and cook until slightly softened then add the beans and cook until they are heated through.
To serve, place the bean mixture on your tostadas, with a bit of the coriander dressing, and serve with your favourite toppings (we used sour cream and homemade guacamole)
