Asian Sesame Noodle Salad

500g thick egg noodles

Greens - spinach, mesclun, lettuce, watercress, whatever.

Mixed fresh vegetables – Mushrooms, aubergines, asparagus, beans, snow peas, broccoli, capsicum, spling onions, carrots, etc (sliced)

Asian Style Dressing

¼ cup sweet chilli sauce

1/3 cup soy sauce

¼ cup balsalmic vinegar

1½ T sugar

1½ T sesame oil – or just use more olive oil, but it does have its own distinct flavour

1/3 cup olive oil

To Garnish

¼ cup sesame seeds – toasted in an ungreased pan on a medium-low heat

¼ cup firmly packed fresh green herbs - coriander, parsley, basil, whatever you have

Boil noodles until just tender, then rinse under cold water and drain.

Steam or sauté any vegetables that need it until just tender (snow peas, broccoli, mushrooms), rinse under cold water and drain. Leave other veges raw, as you so desire.

Combine dressing ingredients in a screw top jar and shake, or stir vigorously in a cup or bowl.

Arrange a green base on serving plates of spinach, watercress or whatever.

Combine all other salad and dressing ingredients + sesame seeds + mix well, then pile on top of spinach.

Garnish with fresh herbs.

Penne Primavera

Make sure you cook the vegetables until just tender but still crunchy.

2T olive oil

Penne pasta for 4 people

1 large onion – chopped finely

2 cloves garlic – crushed

4 baby carrots (or 2 big carrots?) – chopped finely, lengthways into sticks

250g fresh green beans – trimmed + sliced into long sticks.

250g asparagus – chopped coarsely

1T fresh oregano – or ½T dried oregano

2t fresh thyme – or use dried

400g tomatoes in juice

1 ¼ cups grated edam cheese or shaved parmesan.

Cook pasta in hot water with 1T olive oil to prevent sticking together.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large pan over a low heat + cook onion until soft but not browned.
Add garlic and carrot and cook 1 minute. Add beans and cook until they’ve changed colour, then stir in snow peas and asparagus and cook until they are also changed in colour.

Add herbs and tomato, and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat + simmer until heated through and thickened slightly.

Add a little sugar if the sauce tastes bitter.

Toss pasta through the sauce and serve with cheese.

Asian Style Pumpkin and Almond Salad

Whether hot or cold the next day in your lunch, this salad is freakin’ awesome. Serve as a main course with couscous.

1 pumpkin

¼ cup olive oil

1 cup roasted almonds (these really make the difference, yum!)

200g feta

1 fresh red chilli

1 bunch coriander (if you don’t have coriander, other green herbs or spinach)

Asian Dressing

4 cloves garlic

Zest and juice of 4 limes (or use lime juice from a jar and don't worry about the zest)

2T fish sauce

2T soy sauce

2T palm or brown sugar

2T olive oil oil

3t sesame oil

1 fresh red chilli

Salt and pepper

Cut pumpkin into 2 cm cubes and roast with olive oil at 180°C for 30 minutes.

Mix with crumbled feta, finely sliced red chilli, roughly chopped coriander and dressing.

Make Asian dressing by finely slicing garlic and chilli, then shaking all ingredients together in a jar.

Dahl

Dahls = protein.

Serve as an addition to any vege curry, poured over roast veges, or by themselves with brown rice, chappatis or vegetables.

Basic Yellow Dahl

Olive oil

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

2t turmeric

1 cup split red lentils

Saute onion and garlic in oil. Add turmeric, lentils and water. Bring to the boil then reduce to simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until lentils are cooked.

Tomato + Red Lentils

2t olive oil

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

2T curry powder

1 cup red lentils

2 t chicken stock powder

3 cups water

400g can tomatoes

2T tomato paste

1T coriander

2t cumin

2t sweet paprika

½ t cracked black pepper

Sauté chopped onion + garlic in oil, then add curry powder.

Add lentils, stock, water, tomatoes + paste. Bring to boil + simmer 20 minutes or until lentils are soft.

Add coriander + serve.

Limbu Dahl (Red lentils with lime and cheese, Bangladesh)

180g red lentils

1 small onion

¼ t ground turmeric

2T olive oil

4 fresh, hot green chillies – 3 slit down one side but left whole, and the last chopped finely

1T lime juice (or lemon if you’re skimping)

2 ½ cm piece fresh lime rind (“ “ “ “)

2-3T grated cheese

Boil lentils with 1L water, chopped onion and turmeric, but be careful to keep an eye on it until you turn the heat back down, as lentils boil over without warning and make a heck of a mess.

Skim off the scum that rises to the surface, partially cover and simmer 30-40 minutes until cooked.

Heat oil in a small pan until very hot, sizzle slit chillies for a few seconds, then pour over the lentils and snap lid back down to trap the aromas.

Put the lime juice, lime rind, torn lime leaves, cheese + chopped chilli in a warmed serving bowl, pour lentils over, stir and serve immediately.

Geeli Sabut Masoor (Red lentils with garlic + mint)

3T olive oil

2 cloves garlic – crushed

½ t cayenne pepper

185g sabut masoor – whole red lentils, or just use split ones

½ t turmeric

3-4T fresh mint

3-4 fresh, hot green chillies

2 cloves garlic – sliced lengthways into 3 wide slivers

Set a pan containing the oil, crushed garlic and cayenne on a medium-high heat.

When pan begins to sizzle, stir and add 750ml water, sabut masoor + turmeric, stir and bring to the boil.

Partially cover with lid, reduce heat to low and cook approx 55 minutes (for sabut masoor, 30 minutes for split lentils), until cooked.

Add chopped mint and chillies, stir and simmer another 5 minutes.

Sauté garlic slivers over medium-low heat, until they begin to turn golden-red, then add to lentils and serve.

Potatoes with Ginger

Like a yummy Indian hash brown that isn’t made into cakes!

675g small waxy potatoes (eg. Red potatoes or new potatoes)

3T olive oil

½ t whole cumin seeds

½ t whole brown mustard seeds

2 medium onions

¼ t salt

Freshly ground black pepper

¼ t cayenne pepper

2t fresh ginger – peeled and finely grated

Boi l potatoes until tender, cool completely then cut into 1-2cm cubes1

Heat oil over medium heat.

When hot, add cumin and mustard seeds.

When mustard seeds begin to pop (within seconds), add potatoes, chopped onions, salt, pepper + cayenne.

Stir and cook until potatoes are browned, add ginger and cook for another minute or so.

Indian-Style Curried Omelette Pie

This is freaking awesome. Serve with 'potatoes with ginger' and a dark green salad with spinach leaves and vinaigrette.

12 large free-range eggs

50ml light reduced milk + 2T skim milk powder, OR 50ml water mixed with skim milk powder, flour or cornflour to make a paste.

1T olive oil

½ t cumin seeds

10 button mushrooms

6 spling onions

2 fresh hot green chillies

4T fresh coriander leaves

10 cherry tomatoes

2T hot curry powder

Beat eggs lightly and stir in milk paste.

Heat oil over medium heat in a large non-stick pan (preferably with a metal handle, as it will be going under the grill. If you don’t have one, you can just leave the handle sticking out and keep an eye on it to see if it’s melting…), add cumin seeds when hot and sizzle 10 seconds.

Add sliced mushrooms, spling onions, chillies, coriander, cherry tomatoes (cut into 8^ths) and curry powder.

Stir 2-3 minutes, add egg mixture and stir slowly from the bottom of the pan with a flat spatula until you have lots of thick curds, but the top of the pan is still covered with liquid.

Leave to cook for another minute or two without stirring, until the bottom seems set but there is still some liquid on top.

Place the pan under the grill until the eggs are set and the top is golden brown.

Loosen the edges of the omelette with a spatula and try to slide it under the bottom, before turning a plate upside down over the top of the pan and flipping the omelette onto it.

Aubergine Boorani

(India/Afghanistan) This recipe takes a bit more effort, as it uses 3 sauces, all of which can be made a day in advance, and only the tomato-chickpea sauce needs reheating. It's really good though!

3 large aubergines

3T salt

Olive oil

Tomato-Chickpea Sauce –

1T olive oil

2 whole dried hot red chillis

1t whole brown mustard seeds

3 cloves garlic

2x 400g cans tomatoes

10 fresh curry or basil leaves, if available

410g can chickpeas, or 350g cooked and drained chickpeas (see below)

1/4t salt

1t cumin

1t coriander

¼ t turmeric

Yoghurt Sauce –

10T natural yoghurt

¼ t cumin seeds

Tamarind Chutney (buy premade, or make your own) –

2T thick tamarind paste – get the kind without the tamarind skins mixed in – it’s a pain in the arse trying to separate them.

2T sugar

¼ t cumin seeds

Trim aubergine – slice off top and bottom, then cut crossways into slices approx 3-5cm thick.

Place aubergine in a colander and sprinkle cut slices with salt. Leave ½ hour, rinse and pat dry (this step stops the aubergine from soaking up so much oil as it cooks).

Brush aubergine slices with olive oil and grill on both sides until golden brown and cooked through (it should be very melt-in-your-mouthy, with no sponginess).

Tomato-chickpea sauce –

Heat olive oil in a large, heavy lidded pan, when very hot add chillis and mustard seeds.

When mustard seeds begin to pop (within seconds) add crushed garlic.

Stir once, then add tomatoes, curry/basil leaves, chickpeas, salt, cumin, coriander and turmeric.

Bring to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently for 20 minutes.

Remove the 2 chilies before serving.

Yoghurt sauce –

Heat ½ t cumin seeds without oil in a heavy pan over medium heat. Stir until seeds are a few shades darker and smell roasted – but do not burn (easy to do if the heat is too high)! Grind seeds in a mortar + pestle or electric spice grinder. Use half for the tamarind chutney.

Beat yoghurt lightly with a fork of small whisk until smooth, then stir in roasted cumin.

Tamarind Chutney –

Mix tamarind paste, sugar, salt + roasted cumin in a cup.

If aubergine needs reheating, spread in a single layer and bake at 160°C until hot (about 15 minutes).

Spread aubergine slices in a single layer on a large platter or individual plates, pour a small ladle-full of tomato-chickpea sauce on top of each slice, top with yoghurt and tamarind chutney.

Serve with brown rice and any other curries, vegetables, roti, chapattis, poppadoms, etc your heart desires.

To Cook Chickpeas –

Cover with boiling water and leave to soak overnight.

Change water and boil for one hour before adding to the recipe (it is important to change the water between soaking and cooking legumes because of the chemicals that leach out during soaking. The water used during cooking is fine to save and use as a stock though).

Vege Biryani

4 cloves garlic - chopped
2 large onions - chopped
1t turmeric
1t garam masala (see below)
1/2 t cardamom
4 whole cloves
1/2 t ground chilli
1t cumin
1t cinnamon
2t grated ginger
2 bay leaves
500g mixed veg - capsicum, tomato, peas, beans, corn, zucchini, whatever.
1 1/2 cups long grain brown rice - you can use white rice and it will cook faster, but brown rice is better for you and addictive once you start on it. If you think you don't like brown rice, you were probably served rice that was undercooked.
2 1/2 cups vege stock
150g natural yoghurt
Optional: chickpeas (extra protein! See note below)

Gently saute onions and garlic in a large heavy-bottomed pot until soft.
Add the spices, bay leaves and vegetables, then stir for a few seconds until spices are fragrant.
Stir in the rice and stock, bring to the boil then simmer, covered, over a low heat without stirring for 30-40 minutes until rice is cooked.
Stir through yoghurt and serve with naan, raita or dahl if desired.

To Cook Chickpeas –

Cover with boiling water and leave to soak overnight.

Change water and boil for one hour - the rice is boiled for 30-40 minutes in this recipe, so you could boil the chickpeas separately for 30 minutes, then add with the rice and stock. Obviously, if you choose to use white rice the timing will change. (it is important to change the water between soaking and cooking legumes because of the chemicals that leach out during soaking. The water used during cooking is fine to save and use as a stock though).

Raita

There a tons of different recipes for raita. The basic ingredients are natural yoghurt, mint and cucumber, but don’t stress about missing out ingredients, just add whatever you have (grated apple, carrot, cucumber, tomato, etc, be creative with spices…). Just make sure you squeeze the excess juice from any fruit or veg you use, or it ends up surprisingly watery.

250ml natural yoghurt

Freshly ground black pepper

¼ t cayenne pepper

½ t cumin seeds – roasted briefly without oil in a pan and ground

1 tomato – seeded and finely chopped

1 medium cucumber – grated and juice squeezed out

2T fresh mint – finely chopped

Mix all ingredients.

Red Capsicum + Coriander Sauce

Use as a dip, or as a base for pasta sauce or soups...

4 large red capsicums
3 chillies
2 cloves garlic
1 packed cup fresh coriander
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 t salt (or less - I always try and cut back on the salt, sugar and oil used in recipes, you can usually use less and it will still taste good)
1/2 t pepper

Roast capsicums and chillies on an oven tray at 220C until skins start to blister and char (about 20 minutes).
Place in a plastic bag or sealed contianer to cool, while retaining the steam to make them easier to peel.
Peel off skins and discard any seeds and pith.
Puree capsicums and chillies with other ingredients in a food processor or blender.
Stores in the fridge for 4-5 days, or freeze for use at any time of year.

Mexican Spiced Lentil Soup

2T olive oil
2 onions - chopped
3 cloves garlic - chopped
3t Mexican seasoning (1 heaped T cumin, 2T thyme, 2T marjoram, 2T dried parsley, 1t pepper - keep for use in any Mexican food)
2 400g cans tomaotes
6 cups vege stock
1/3 cup tomato paste
1 1/2 cups red lentils
2T brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander or parsley
sour cream to garnish (optional)

Saute onions and garlic in oil until lightly golden.
Stir in the Mexican seasoning, then add the tomatoes, stock, tomato paste, lentils and sugar.
Bring to the boil, stir, reduce the temperature and simmer 45 minutes.
Add chopped fresh herbs and a dollop of sour cream to each bowl.

Kumara Slices with Cumin

700g kumara - scrubbed (leave the skin on unless it's old and manky, because it has lots of extra fibre in it)
2T olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
2t cumin seeds
1t curry powder
1t brown sugar

Slice kumara into 1.5cm-thick slices.
Mix dry ingredients together.
Coat kumara slices in oil and dip in dry ingredients to coat.
Grill slices over medium heat for about 4 minutes on each side
OR
Roast slices at 220C for about 15 minutes.

Serve with a tomatoey sauce.

Roast Portobello Mushrooms

Best mushrooms ever.

Lie Portobello mushrooms (or other large mushrooms) so the underside is facing upward and pile with low-fat ricotta cheese, sprinkle with cayenne or nutmeg, + bake at 180°C until cooked through.

Pasta with Tomatoes, Artichokes + Olives

Quick, easy + delicious.

2t olive oil

1 medium onion – chopped finely

2 cloves garlic – crushed

¼ cup dry white wine – or substitute any wine

2 cans tomatoes in juice

2T tomato paste

½ t sugar

½ cup black olives

390g can artichoke hearts – drained and quartered

2T fresh basil leaves – finely sliced (or just use dried)

Spiral pasta for 4 people

1/3 cup grated edam or flaked parmesan cheese

Cook pasta while making the sauce.

Sauté onion + garlic in olive oil until onion is soft, but not browned.

Add wine, tomatoes, tomato paste + sugar, + simmer uncovered 15 minutes until the sauce thickens.

Add olives, artichoke hearts and basil, + stir until hot.

Toss pasta through ½ the sauce, dollop the remaining sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese.

Aubergine and Mushroom Pastitsio

Pastitsio can be made one day ahead and stored in the fridge to bake the next day if time is an issue. It'll take a lot longer to heat up in the oven though.

1/3 cup olive oil

1 medium aubergine – cut into 2cm pieces

1 onion – chopped finely

2 cloves garlic – crushed

200g mushrooms – halved

2 cans tomatoes in juice

½ cup dry red wine – or just substitute any wine if you’re not fussy

1 ½ cups vege stock

250g penne pasta

1 ½ cups grated edam cheese

Pinch ground nutmeg

Cream Sauce

2 cups ricotta cheese – sieved

3 eggs – beaten lightly

1 cup light evaporated milk

¾ cup grated edam cheese

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

Heat 2T olive oil in a large pan, cook aubergine until browned + drain on kitchen paper.

Add remaining oil to pan + sauté onion, garlic and mushrooms until onion is soft.

Cook pasta until just tender, drain.

Simmer tomatoes, wine + stock in another pot for about 10 minutes until thick.

Combine all cream sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Stir in aubergine + mushroom mixture.

Combine pasta with ½ the aubergine mixture. Spread into a 2.5L ovenproof dish, top with remaining mixture, spread with cream sauce and sprinkle with cheese and nutmeg.

Bake uncovered at 180°C for approx 40 minutes, or until heated through + browned.

Mexican Corn Bread

A good accompanment to any Mexican meal. The corn and milk provide extra protein.

1 cup marg

1 cup sugar

4 eggs

1 can creamed corn

1 cup edam cheese

1 cup wholemeal flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal – try combining fine meal + coarse ground cornmeal for texture.

4 t baking powder

½ t salt

Cream marg + sugar together, then add eggs one at a time.

Add corn and cheese, mix well + add dry ingredients.

Blend well + pour into greased + floured baking tin.

Bake 45-60min at 160° C.

Enchiladas

Baked stuffed tortillas that go soft and pasta-like when baked in the salsa

12 tortillas

Olive oil

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

1 can tomatoes

1t dried oregano

1t cumin

chilli/tobasco to taste

2 cups refried beans

3 cups mixed veges – avocado, capsicum, mushrooms, tomato, corn, spinach, green beans, etc

2 cups grated cheese

Brown onion + garlic in olive oil. Add tomatoes, oregano and cumin and simmer a few minutes. Season with chilli/tobasco + freshly ground black pepper.

Sauté chopped veges in olive oil.

Put a little of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a large casserole dish (save most of it for spreading on top).

Spread a little refried beans + vege mixture across middle of each tortilla + roll (it takes surprisingly little to fill an enchilada, so don’t overdo it or they become hard to roll).

Place flap side down in casserole dish + pour over remaining sauce, then sprinkle with cheese. Make sure the tortillas are well covered with the sauce, or they will go tough and dry when baked.

Bake 20-25 min until thoroughly warmed.

Make It Yourself: Basic Components of Mexican Food

My Personal Opinion: It's definitely worth making your own guacamole and salsa since the shop-bought versions are so crap, but making your own refried bans and tortillas depends a bit more on whether you can be bothered and whether you have the freezer space.

Guacamole

Seriously – check the ingredient labels on bought guacamole. Most are in the range of 3-5% avocado, the rest being water, oil + reconstituted veges. Yuk.

2 ripe avocados

3-4 T salsa – or 1 fresh tomato

1 t lemon juice

1 t chopped fresh chilli or chilli powder

Either mash avocados or cut into small chunks, whatever your personal taste. Combine.

Salsa

1 medium onion

½ green capsicum

2 cloves garlic

1-2 t chilli powder

1 t cumin

1 t salt

pinch cayenne

2 tins tomatoes or fresh tomatoes

Mince all ingredients except tomatoes in food processor, add tomatoes last + blend a little so still slightly chunky. If you don’t have a food processor, just chop veges finely, crush garlic and mix.

Salsa II

Tomatoes

Fresh coriander

Red onion

Sweet chilli sauce

Lime juice – or substitute lemon

Chop + combine to taste.

Refried Beans

Mexican households often cook up one massive pot of beans at the beginning of the week, which gets reheated and reused in a variety of different meals until the beans eventually break down into a kind of mash, which has come to be known as refried beans. Now we cook beans specifically to be used as refried beans and sell them in cans. Go figure.

2 cups uncooked mixed beans

6 cups water

2 bay leaves

1 T cumin

1 t coriander

½ t cayenne

½ t pepper

2 ½ t salt

3 T olive oil

1 onion

1 green capsicum

4 cloves garlic

50g marg

Soak beans + bay leaves in water overnight, or boil + let stand 1 hour for beans to absorb water.

Change water + simmer partially covered for an hour or more, stirring occasionally until tender (OR – place beans in a crock pot overnight, or while you’re out during the day).

Sauté onion, capsicum + garlic in oil until tender.

Add spices + sauté 2 min.

Remove bay leaves + mash cooked beans until smooth with a potato masher or food processor.

Combine spice mix with marg, mix until smooth + mix into beans.

Serve in Mexican meals or as a dip for corn chips, topped with sour cream.

Tortillas

These take a while to make, especially rolling the dough. I usually just buy them premade. If you do make a batch it's worthwhile making them in bulk and freezing the excess if you have the freezer space.

2 cups wholemeal flour

½ t salt

50g marg

½ cup cold water

Combine ingredients, cut in marg with a fork + toss to make a stiff dough.

Knead thoroughly until smooth + flecked with air bubbles.

Divide into 8 balls for large tortillas, or 11 for small ones.

Roll as thinly as possible on a lightly floured board.

Place on a very warm ungreased fry pan, bake at a medium temperature (not hot!) until freckled on one side (about 20 sec), then bake on other side.

Intro to Mexican Combos

Much Mexican food consists of the same types of fillings in different casings – here’s some inspiration:

Tacos - ‘U’ shaped crisp corn wafers that are filled with yummy toppings

Nachos – Triangular corn chips served with beans or refried beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, guacamole + sprinkled with corn + parsley

Quesadillas – Spanish lit: “little cheesy thing”; filled flour tortillas, folded in half (or 2 tortillas with filling in the middle) and dry fried over medium heat or grilled on each side (these also work incredibly well in cafe-style sandwich presses). Often served cut into wedges.

Fajitas – Flour tortillas laid flat like a plate and piled high with toppings, or wrapped around them in a parcel.

Tostadas – A crispy toasted flour or corn tortillas spread with refried beans (traditionally frijoles refritos, refried black beans), shredded lettuce, onion, cheese and salsa.

You can toast your tortilla flat (in a toaster!), or push it into a bowl-shape in a large muffin tin, ramekin or similar + grill it (called a chalupa). Best ever tostadas: avocado, cashew, lettuce, salsa + cheese with rice, sour cream and refried black beans on the side, at South of the Border on Manchester Street.

Enchiladas – Flour tortillas rolled with fillings inside, smothered in salsa or tomato sauce and cheese and baked so the tortillas go soft like pasta.

Fillings:

Refried beans

Other bean mixes –black beans, chilli beans, etc

Rice

Onions

Tomatoes

Grated carrot

Fresh corn

Capsicum

Avocado

Mushrooms

Shredded lettuce

Alfalfa or bean sprouts

Grated edam cheese

Hot chillis

Jalapenos

Salsa

Chilli sauce

Lite sour cream

Guacamole

Risotto Tips

1. Never wash the rice.

2. Cook onion and garlic until transparent but not browned, or it will add a bitter flavour to the risotto.

3. The stock should always be simmering before being added to the rice, or the rice will become gluggy and slow to cook. Have the stock simmering in a pot next to the risotto so you can add it as needed.

4. The stock should be added ladle by ladle and the rice allowed to absorb the liquid, or the risotto won’t become creamy.

5. Stir the risotto frequently during cooking; the more stirring, the creamier the texture.

6. Turn off the heat immediately once all the liquid has been added and absorbed, then add the cheese, cream, or any other final flavourings.

7. Always serve immediately. Risotto waits for no man, and will get crappier and crappier as it sits. Risotto reheated the next day is edible, but pretty av.

Pumpkin + Sage Risotto

Optional Meat: Bacon.
To Make it Super-Fancy if You're Trying to Impress Someone: The original recipe reckoned you could cut a nice-looking pumpkin in half horizontally, hollow out one half + pre-roast it at 180°C with a drizzle of olive oil to create a pumpkin bowl for serving. My personal opinion is that it isn't worth the effort.

6 fresh sage leaves (can use dried or substitute other green herbs)

1 onion

400g Arborio rice

1.2L vege stock

Freshly ground black pepper

25g butter

4T grated parmesan

Gently fry sliced onion in a heavy pan until softened but not browned.

Finely chop ½ of the sage leaves and add to the pan, then add the pumpkin and cook gently for 10 minutes until soft.

Add the rice, stir fry for a couple of minutes, then slowly add hot stock, allowing the rice to absorb the liquid as you go.

Simmer 20 minutes until rice is well-cooked, then stir in the butter and parmesan and serve sprinkled with pepper and remaining sage leaves.

Spinach + Kumara Soup

Potential Confounder: this recipe really does need a food processor to work.

Optional Meat: this is really good with bacon. Toast it up separately in a pan and add it after you've blended the rest, otherwise you get funky bacon grit all through your soup.

500g spinach

2 onions

2 cloves garlic

3 Kumara – can use potatoes, but kumara adds a yummy sweetness

Olive oil

4 cups vege stock

Pinch ground nutmeg

Salt & Pepper

Lite sour cream

Red pepper or tomato

Wash spinach. Peel and roughly chop onions. Crush, peel and chop garlic.

Peel potatoes and cut into cubes. Melt butter in a large saucepan.

Sauté onions and crushed garlic in olive oil for 5 minutes until clear.

Pour in chicken stock + bring to the boil, then add chopped kumara.

Cook for 10 minutes or until almost tender, then add spinach and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and puree in a food processor.

Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream on top + garnish with sliced red pepper or diced tomato.

Zucchini + Feta Fritters with Tomato Sauce + Yoghurt

Fritters can be a pain in the arse to cook. Another way to cook any kind of fritters is to quickly brown them in a pan on high heat on both sides, then bake at 200C for 5 minutes or so until springy to touch (or you can just eat one and see if it's cooked yet).
Obviously you can serve these fritters with any other sauces or toppings you like, so don't let the suggested ingredients/extra work load put you off making them.

Zucchini Fritters

6 Zucchini

½ t iodised salt

Zest of 1 lemon

6 Spling onions

85g flour

2 eggs

3T parsley

200g feta (preferably the firm type rather than the creamy type)

Olive oil

Tomato Sauce

4T extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic

1 small hot red chili

8 medium tomatoes or 400g tin tomatoes in juice

250g Labneh or thick plain yoghurt to serve

Combine grated zucchini, salt, zest, and chopped spling onions in a bowl and sit for ½ hour while the salt draws the moisture from the zucchini.

Press the mixture into a sieve or squeeze out handfuls to expel excess moisture.

Mix in flour, eggs, parsley and crumbled feta.

Fry spoonfuls of mixture in olive oil over moderate heat until bubbles appear on top, then flip and fry until browned on other side.

When cooked through, drain on paper towels.

Tomato Sauce

Gently fry thinly sliced garlic and chili (seeds removed) until garlic begins to brown.

Add tomatoes and cook approx 10min.

Serve fritters with a dollop of tomato sauce and yoghurt.