wet weather timetable

I had big plans for today but all this rain and thunder seems determined to keep me indoors. Instead I think we'll stay in bed: drink some tea, read a bit, watch a film, pretend like I enjoy winter (now that the end is nigh). I even have some left over cauliflower chickpeas & chorizo soup in the fridge. Yup! Its my new favorite. So thats settled then. And what about you, what will you do today?

PS - Recipe here.

mar-twee-ni

 

OH HEY, did you see my contribution to design*sponge's 'behind the bar' series over here?!

black sticky rice porridge

I was first served Black Rice Porridge as a breakfast food in Bali some 13 years back. It was 4am and we were off to climb some volcano and watch the sunrise, so forced my 14 year old self to down this black sloppy 'energy food' helper. I never did make it to the top of that mountain but I spent the next six years of my life secretly obsessing over that breakfast until I found it for sale again from a Beijing street seller. Since then, there have been several failed attempts at recreating this dish using various microwavable 'intant' packets, but had never (until now) thought to just google how to make that guy!

Oh god, its the easiest thing to make ever and is just so damned tasty. I want to describe it as chocolatey but think maybe its just delicious like chocolate but with a different flavour all together. I dont know. What I am really trying to say here is - Make it! Its summery goodness and winter comfort food all in one so youve got no excuse. Even add fresh mango or banana! Yum!

A "recipe". Inverted Comma.

1C Black Glutenous Rice (aka Black Sticky Rice)

5C Water

4 Tbsp Palm Sugar (but palm sugar can be a bit scary though, non? raw sugar is ok too, apparently)

1 Tin Coconut Cream

Mango or Banana (Optional)

Serves 4-6.

Wash then soak rice overnight. Add to a pot with 5 cups of water. Bring the the boil and simmer for roughly 1 hour, stirring occasionally. It should be a porridge like consistancy with the rice soft right through. Stir in shaved palm sugar to taste (roughly 4 tablespoon, it does need to be quite sweet!) then serve with coconut cream and fruit.

Refridgerated, it will keep well for a few days, too. Just reheated as you go. Yep.

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Oh, and how amazing are those pincushion protea flowers? My housemate and I picked them from someones garden while drunkardly walking home last week, as we are known to do. They are my new love.

Spicey Carrot and Lentil Soup

My friend Apryl cooked a Spicey Carrot and Lentil Soup for some friends and I late last year and it was so delicious I've been thinking about it ever since!  For shame, though, I keep forgetting to ask for the original recipe, and instead have slowly accrued this version via a combination of rumor, hearsay and a fair bit of 'guesstimation' on my behalf. Though probably fairly bastardised from the original, this recipe still tastes great and is so easy to make that I've been eating it pretty regularly these last few wintry weeks. Pryl, please correct me where I'm wrong!

Spicey Carrot and Lentil Soup

4 Large Carrots
1 Brown Onion
2 Cloves Garlic
3 Cups Vegetable Stock
1 cup of dried (or 1 can of) red lentils
1/2 cup crushed Cashews
1 - 2 tbsp good quality Red Curry Paste (depending how spicey you like it!)
Greek Yoghurt, Coriander, Cashews & Bread to Serve.

Combine (pre-soaked, if using dried) lentils, grated carrots and veggie stock in a pot, simmering until the lentils are tender (around 15 mins).  Meanwhile, sautee diced onion and garlic together with a tbsp of oil in a frying pan. To this mixture add cashews and red curry paste, stirring to combine. Add this mix to the stockpot and blend with a food processor until smooth. Add more stock/water here if needed. Serve with a dollop of greek yoghurt, coriander, extra cashews,  and some crispy bread or naan on the side. 

the peel sessions

I am sure to rant at some later stage about the sorrowful state of dutch eats but for now I'll just say this: I MISS HAVING AN OVEN. With this in mind allow me to present to you... The life cycle of an Orange.

Now for my highly technical chocolate dipped orange peel 'recipe':

Wash and slice up some orange/s (but make sure its organic -even if you wouldn't normally buy organic - because youre eating the peel, duh). Get rid of the flesh (my years of rigorous testing have found this be a fairly effective method) and off as much of the pith as possible. Slice up the peel then boil in water for a few minutes. Change the water, boil again quickly, then drain (this removes bitterness). Again, in the pot, cover with equal parts sugar and water. Stir over low heat to combine then cover and let simmer for about 45 minutes. Drain and dry - I did this on low heat in the cursed "grill-oven" with the door open (as you can see, the back ones got a bit crispy, SO GOOD), but if you have any patience (I don't) you could also leave them out to dry on a cooling rack for a few hours. Then, melt some chocolate (I used a little block of dark green and blacks but you cold use milk chocolate too), dip the peels half in the chocolate, then lay them out on some wax or baking paper to set. Then, eat 'em! Yum.

Oh, and the sugary syrup smelt delicious & orangey so I added a few knobs of butter, some more orange zest then boiled the shit out of that sucker to make some toffee. School fete as...! (& hows that all for food waste reduction!? ) Next time I want to try this with whole candied slices or maybe that chocolate covered bacon I keep reading about everywhere. Only half joking.