Smoothie Pods

Top - Banana Choc and Chia; Middle - Peach Banana & Cinnamon; Bottom - Gold Kiwi Fruit, Pineapple, Spinach & Mint

Lately I've been over doing it just a little, so for me it's the perfect time for a little smoothie detox.  These Smoothie Pods have endless possibilities when it comes to flavour combinations.  You can add whatever fruit or vegetable combination you like, just as long as you add 2 cups of liquid as the base for your pods when preparing. In addition a quarter cup of natural Greek yoghurt will also give it a lovely guilt free creamy consistency.  I prefer to use a milk base for my chocolate pods and a coconut water base for my fruity pods but it really does depend on personal choice. The Smoothie Pods are convenient to have on hand saving you time and all that prep each morning.  Make a batch for the week, pop into your blender with your desired liquid, be it Almond milk, Skim Milk, Coconut Water or Soy etc... And whizz away!  Place your pods in a zip lock bag and place in the freezer.  They will keep for up to 1 month.

Feel free to leave a comment with your very own flavour combinations, would love to know how you go with these.

Banana Choc and Chia

Makes 8 Smoothie Pods

2 cups Milk of your choice

2 tablespoons Dark Cocoa Powder

2 Bananas

2 tablespoons White Chia Seeds

2 tablespoons Raw Almonds

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  Once smooth pour into a standard sized muffin tin.  Refrigerate overnight.  Remove from muffin tin and place into a zip lock bag and place in the freezer until ready to use. To remove from the muffin tin run a small sharp knife  around the pod to release.   Will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

To make the Smoothie using the Smoothie Pod:

Place 2 pods into a blender* with 1 cup of Milk of your choice.  Blend until smooth.

*Depending on the strength of your blender you may need to either halve or quarter the pod prior to placing in the blender.

Peach Banana Chia and Cinnamon

Makes 8 Smoothie Pods

2 cups Coconut Water

2 Peaches

2 Bananas

2 tablespoons Raw Almonds

2 tablespoons White Chia Seeds

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  Once smooth pour into a standard sized muffin tin.  Refrigerate overnight.  Remove from muffin tin and place into a zip lock bag and place in the freezer until ready to use. To remove from the muffin tin run a small sharp knife  around the pod to release.   Will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

To make the Smoothie using the Smoothie Pod:

Place 2 pods into a blender* with 1 cup of liquid of your choice.  Blend until smooth.

*Depending on the strength of your blender you may need to either halve or quarter the pod prior to placing in blender.

Gold Kiwi Fruit, Pineapple, Spinach and Mint

Makes 8 Smoothie Pods

2 cups Coconut Water

4 Gold Kiwi Fruits

1 cup Pineapple - chopped

1/2 cup Baby Spinach leaves

10 Mint Leaves

Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.  Once smooth pour into a standard sized muffin tin.  Refrigerate overnight.  Remove from muffin tin and place into a zip lock bag and place in the freezer until ready to use. To remove from the muffin tin run a small sharp knife  around the pod to release.   Will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

To make the Smoothie using the Smoothie Pod:

Place 2 pods into a blender* with 1 cup of liquid of your choice.  Blend until smooth.

*Depending on the strength of your blender you may need to either halve or quarter the pod prior to placing in blender.

Run a small sharp knife around the ring of the muffin tin to release the pod

Folar Folhado - Portuguese Easter Bread

It's Easter Sunday and Last Minute Sally is still baking!  It would not be Easter without Folar.  This sweet bread is layered with lashings of butter, brown sugar and cinnamon which create the most aromatic syrupy caramel between each layer.  A tradition in Portugal and one which I will keep going for many years to come.  There are many variations on this sweet bread.  This one is called "Folhado" which means layered.  You will often see traditional Folar with a few boiled eggs baked into it.  You can embed the boiled eggs into the top of this Folar prior to baking if you wish but I prefer it without.

550g Plain Flour

2 heaped teaspoons of Dried Yeast

Juice of 1 large Orange

75 ml warm Milk

120g Butter - Melted

50ml Rum

3 tablespoons Raw Sugar

1 teaspoon Mixed Spice

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1 egg

Pinch of Salt

For the layers:

150g melted Butter

Cinnamon to dust

100g Brown Sugar

Pre-Heat Oven to 190 degrees Celsius Fan Forced.

You will need a 20cm round cake tin.  To prepare your cake tin, grease with butter.  Place 3 small knobs of butter on the bottom of your pan.  Sprinkle a small handful of brown sugar on top.

Attach the hook attachment to your mixer.  Alternatively you can mix by hand in a large bowl and knead by hand for approximately 8-10 minutes.  Dough should look smooth and have some elasticity to it.

Warm the milk in the microwave for 30 seconds.  To the milk add the yeast and stir to combine.  The warm milk will activate the yeast.

To the bowl of your mixer add the flour.  Make a well in the middle and add the yeast mixture, orange juice, butter, rum, raw sugar, mixed spice, cinnamon egg and pinch of salt.

Start your mixer and mix until all ingredients are well incorporated and well kneaded.  This should take approximately 8 minutes. 

Once kneaded form the dough into a disc, lightly flour the top and bottom and place in a large bowl.  Cover with a towel and place in a warm place.

Let the dough rise for 1 hour.

Once the dough has risen, punch down the dough.  With a rolling pin, roll out into a rectangular shape.

Using a pastry brush, brush an even layer of butter all over the dough.  

Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly on top of the butter and sprinkle the cinnamon on top of the sugar.  This while cooking will form into a nice gooey caramel.

Fold one half of the dough into the centre and the other half into the centre.  

Again brush an even layer of butter all over the dough.

Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.

Repeat with another fold and layer of butter, sugar and cinnamon.

This next step will be your last fold.  You should now have to rolls with one going on top of the other to form a log shape.

Gently straighten out your log to even out.

The folds are going to create the layers within the bread whilst baking.  

Form this dough into a tight coil.

Place the coil into your prepared cake tin.  

Let the dough prove in the cake tin for another half hour.

Once it has proved, bake for 35-40 minutes.

As the bread bakes it will form a nice sticky caramel on the base of your pan which will nicely coat the top of your bread once turned out.

Turn out and enjoy!

Feliz Pascoa - Happy Easter

Gambas - BBQ Prawns

My mum cooks these prawns the best! You can either BBQ them or they taste equally good cooked on the stove top in a wok. This is another one of my recipes where the crusty bread makes yet another appearance.  The juices from these prawns is so yummy you will definitely want to dip.


Serve as a starter or as a selection when cooking a few different seafood dishes to share.  This dish always makes an appearance when we are cooking a feast and that generally means at any given opportunity.


Serves 4

1 kg raw King Prawns

1/4 cup Olive Oil + a drizzle for hot plate

5 cloves crushed garlic

1 cup finely chopped Parsley

2 Red Chilis finely sliced

Juice of 1 Lemon

Salt and Pepper


For those that have viewed the BBQ Baby Octopus recipe, this one works in much the same way.

In a bowl place the finely chopped parsley, garlic and chilli.

Add the olive oil and stir to combine.

Drizzle your BBQ hot plate with Olive Oil.

Place prawns on pre heated BBQ plate and cook until they change colour - should be orangey red.  This should take approximately 8-10 minutes.

Once prawns are cooked season with salt and pepper and mix through the herb mixture.

Squeeze the lemon juice on top of the prawns.

Season with salt and pepper.

Place cooked prawns in serving bowl.

Serve with crusty bread and garden salad.



If you are making this recipe in a wok the instructions and cooking times remain the same,

Enjoy!

Vietnamese Baked Snapper With Oriental Dressing and Herb Salad

I absolutely love Vietnamese food.  I find the flavours so fresh and well balanced. This is the first time I have made this Snapper and it has worked a treat.

The Snapper is baked in the enveloped baking paper (en papillote).  This nicely steams the fish and encases all the flavours you have placed in your little parcels.


Serves 4 - 6


Baked Snapper

2 Snappers approximately 1-1.5kg each

2 Lemongrass stalks - bruised and cut in half

Salt and Pepper

Olive Oil


Herb Salad

1/4 cup roughly chopped corriander

1/4 cup mint leaves

2-3 red chillis finely sliced

2 stalks of green shallot finely sliced


Palm Sugar Dressing

1 red chilli finely sliced

50g palm sugar*

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon salt reduced soy sauce

Juice of 2 small limes

*Palm Sugar is available at Asian Grocers.  If you are unable to find use 1 1/2 tablespoon of brown sugar.


Baked Snapper:

Cut 4 slits along each side of the fish which will enable your sauce to penetrate through to the flesh.

Cut 4 pieces of baking paper bigger than the size of your fish.  Place 2 pieces of paper on top of each other and place each fish on top.

Season fish with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

Place the lemon grass stalks alongside each fish.

Fold in the sides of the baking paper to encase the fish - just as you would wrap a present.

Bake in the oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 20-25 minutes.

Once the fish is in the oven, make the herb salad which will top your fish once cooked.

To make the herb salad:

In a bowl, place the roughly chopped corriander, the green shallot, the mint leaves, the green shallot and chilli and toss to combine.  Set aside.

To make the Oriental sauce:

In a bowl add the finely grated palm sugar, the fish sauce, the soy sauce, the chilli and the lime juice.  Mix to combine and taste to check for well balanced flavours.  The sauce should be a balance of sweet, sour with a little kick from the chilli.

Once the fish is cooked remove from oven and open the baking paper.  Top with the herb salad and drizzle the sauce all over.

Serve with steamed Jasmine Rice.



Enjoy!

Dan's BBQ Octopus

Hubby is not one to dabble in the kitchen, but when it comes to cooking on the barbie, he's the man!



Serves 4


1kg Baby Octopus - cleaned

1/2 cup Parsley - finely chopped

1 - 2 Red Chillis - finely chopped

5 Cloves Garlic - finely chopped

1/4 cup Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Juice of 1 Lemon




Slice each baby octopus in half lengthways.  Drain in a colander for approximately half an hour to remove excess water.

Finely chop the parsley, chilli and garlic and place in a bowl.  To this add the olive oil.

Pre-heat the hot plate on your BBQ.  Drizzle the hot plate with olive oil.

Place octopus on hot plate and BBQ for approximately 15-20 minutes.  Ensure to turn the octopus every so often so they cook evenly.

Once cooked, season with salt and pepper and mix through the parsley mixture whilst still on the hot plate.

Squeeze the lemon juice on top of octopus.

Place in serving bowl and enjoy with a crisp salad and don't forget the crusty bread.  The juices are so full of flavour, you will have everyone bowl dipping.



Enjoy!

A Lazy Sunday Brunch....Baked Eggs

The most important ingredient you will need for this recipe is....crusty bread!

The sauce is so rich and full of flavour that you will want to mop up every last bit with your crusty bread.

This is a favourite of mine because, yes it tastes wonderful but best of all it's a one pot wonder and seriously who wants to be washing up on a Sunday morning!

Serves 6

3 - 4 tablespoons olive oil
1 Spanish onion halved and thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic - crushed
2 chorizo sausages sliced
1 piece smoked speck approximately 5 cm thickness* - sliced into 1 cm chunks
2 cans crushed tomatoes 
Handful of basil leaves - torn
Dried oregano about a handful
1/4 cup boiling water
Salt and pepper
Pinch of sugar
Can of cannellini beans** drained
6 free range eggs
6 handfuls of rocket
Shavings of fresh Parmesan cheese
Crusty bread to serve

*Substitute smoked speck with 6 bacon rashers or 6 slices of pancetta if desired

**You can use any type of canned beans of your choice eg: three bean mix, chickpeas etc...

In a deep pan add the olive oil and cook the garlic and onion until soft.  

Add the speck and chorizo and cook until golden and crisp.

Add the crushed tomato and oregano and season with salt and pepper.

Add a splash of boiling water. This will thin out your sauce just slightly.

Add a pinch of sugar to cut through the acidity of the tomato. Stir through and cook the tomato base for approximately 3-4 minutes.

Add the basil leaves and stir through.

Add the beans. Stir through. They will add richness to and thicken up your sauce.

Crack each egg and place directly on top of sauce. Crack black pepper (to taste) ontop of each egg.

Cover the pan with a lid or fit a piece of aluminium foil to cover pan.  This will create steam which in turn will poach your eggs.

Cook until eggs are cooked to your liking.  We like the whites done with the yolks runnny. Approximately 4-5 minutes.

Serve individual servings.  With a spoon place an egg in each serving dish, top with more sauce.  Top with rocket and shavings of Parmesan cheese.

Serve with crusty bread.

Enjoy!

Retro Black Forest Chocolate Mousse

My little Retro Black Forest Chocolate Mousse looks as cute as a button with it's little flared Strawberry sitting on top.  This is so decadent yet airy and perfectly matched with the berry sauce below all that chocolatey goodness.

Serves 6

200g cooking chocolate*
25g butter (at room temperature)
3 eggs, seperated
250ml or 1 cup thickened cream
1 vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
300g mixed frozen berries
3 tablespoons caster sugar

* I like to use a combination of 100g dark cooking chocolate and 100g milk cooking chocolate, especially if making for children.

BERRY SYRUP

In a saucepan add your frozen berries and caster sugar.  Cook until the berries become soft and the sugar is now syrupy.

Allow to cool and place spoonfuls of the berry mixture on the bottom of each serving glass distributing evenly.

If you are using a single serving dish place the entire berry mixture on the bottom of your dish.


CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Place a saucepan with water on stove top and bring to a gentle simmer.

Place a heatproof bowl over the saucepan and add chocolate and butter until melted.

Once melted, remove the bowl and set aside to cool a little.  If you do not let the mixture cool slightly,  once you add the yolks in the next step, you are at risk of cooking them if the mixture is too hot.  Adding them in to a slightly cool mixture will allow you to mix the yolks through.

To the chocolate add the Vanilla and the egg yolks. Stir this through with a spoon quite quickly so that your chocolate does not harden.
If using a Vanilla pod, split in half and scrape vanilla from pod with the back of a knife and add to mixture.

Place the cream in an electric mixer and beat until soft peaks form.  You do not want the cream to be mixed until it becomes stiff.  The cream should just cling to the paddle.

Using a spatula, gently fold through half of your cream to the chocolate mixture.  Once incorporated repeat with the remaining cream.

The next step will add that spongy light texture to your mousse.
Add your egg whites to the bowl of your electric mixer. 
Your bowl and paddle must be extremely clean to ensure your whites will reach the desired consistency.
Beat your egg whites until soft peaks form. 

Fold through half your egg whites to your chocolate mixture.  Once incorporated repeat with the remaining egg whites.

Distribute the mousse evenly amongst each serving glass or if using a serving dish, pour the mousse over the berry mixture.


FLARED STRAWBERRY

Cut 3 - 4 slits (depending on the size of your strawberry) diagonally from the tip of the bottom of the strawberry to just below the stem and gently push down to flare. Place strawberry on top of your individual mousses or arrange on top of your serving dish.


Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

Canjinha....Portuguese Chicken Soup

Whenever the family is feeling unwell I make a big pot of this soup.  Cooked with love and lots of garlic, the poached egg on top gives it the punch it needs...Comfort food at its best!

I usually make this in a big soup pot but you can use any pot, just depends on how many you are cooking for.

I'm not really good with measurements...with this soup the general rule is for whatever sized pot you are going to make your soup in fill 3/4 of the way up with water.  Your sized pot will depend on how many you are cooking for.

Serves 6 - 8  (to make for 4 - 6 add less water(fill half way up), and use 500g chicken wings and 300g rice - the other ingredients remain the same)

Water

Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

Minced Garlic - 4 tablespoons

4 tablespoons Chicken stock powder - I like to use Vegeta

1 large Onion - Quartered

Lemon

1 kilo chicken wings

Half a bunch of Corriander - coarsely chopped

500g long grain rice

1 Egg per person

Bring water to boil

Add a drizzle of olive oil 

Add Onion and Chicken wings

Add Chicken stock powder, garlic, salt and pepper

Cook until chicken is cooked - approximately 15 minutes

Once chicken is cooked remove from stock.  Allow to cool and shred chicken discarding bones.

Add juice of half lemon

Add Corriander

Check the stock for seasoning.  You may need to add a little more garlic, salt and pepper. This will depend on your personal choice

Once seasoning is to your standard add the rice

Once the rice is cooked return the shredded chicken to the soup until heated through

Laddle the soup into the bowls

Crack each egg into the leftover soup and poach in the stock

This should only take a minute or two - you want the yolk runny.  As soon as your egg whites appear cooked your eggs are done - remove with a ladle

Place egg on top of soup and dust with crack black pepper

Nutella Torte

An indulgent Torte, part Portuguese and all about Nutella.

9 eggs
300g Caster Sugar
100g Almond Meal
100g Hazelnut Meal
Zest of 1 Lemon
1 dessert spoonful of Plain Flour*
300g Nutella
Extra Caster Sugar for sprinkling

1 clean Table Cloth

1 baking sheet or baking tray approximately 35x23cm


Pre-heat oven to 190º Fan Forced Oven

Grease and Line your baking sheet

Beat eggs and Caster Sugar in mixer until pale in colour and fluffy in appearance - about 6-10 minutes

Using a spatula mix in the zest, meal and plain flour
*Omit flour for Gluten free

Pour batter onto sheet and spread evenly

Bake for 15-20 minutes - should look golden ontop


Place clean tea towel on bench and sprinkle with Caster Sugar

Turn the Torte out onto the table cloth

While still warm spread even layer of Nutella all over

With the aid of the tea towel commence to roll the torte into a log from the long side of the rectangle. Ensure you tighten as you roll so you end up with a snug log

Place in refrigerator for half an hour to ensure the Nutella does not ooze out of the ends

Remove from refrigerator and bring back to room temperature

Slice and serve

You can view my tutorial on the link below

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=D9-Nq22q9rc