Homemade Gnocchi with Bolognaise Sauce

 

Here are my little Gnocchis ready to be poached, notice i didn't bother with the indenting with a fork it makes the process a lot quicker. 

 

Here is the finished dish with the bolognaise, and a delicious non edible bay leaf sticking out.

Pork Loin Stuffed with Almond and Apricot

Sorry i didn't take a picture of it served and cooked but this is it stuffed and rolled ready to go in the oven.
The quality of the pork loin from the butchers was so much better than what you get at coles or woolworths in termes of the size of the cut and it was absolutly fantastic.

This recipe was pretty simple i just make up a stuffing mixture placed in the center of my pork loin after removing the excess fat from the cut and then rolled it up and tied it. (If your not sure how to tie it just look on the internet but its pretty much just a really long present :P ) Stuffing recipe below...

Mango, Pumpkin and Chickpea Curry

Since mango is in season this is really a recipe worth trying, the whole mustard seeds really make this dish delicious.

I found this last year when I was searching for a mango and chickpea curry recipe, and this was the best one i found.

This curry is probably best with as a choice of a range of curries since it is slightly sweet.

Omelette

I LOVE OMELETTE!

It is easy, quick, filling and high in protein. Which is exactly what i want for breakfast, cereal is just not filling enough.
This picture above is 2 pieces of dark rye, hummus, a 2 egg omelette, 1 sliced tomato, shaved turkey and lots of grated pepper. YUM.

Mexican Dinner

This is how we do Mexican at home, it's not traditional really but it is totally delicious.

Tapioca and Mango Pudding

This is an old fashioned pudding with a modern twist. I adapted it from the recipe on the back of the Tapioca packet. I didn't have any limes on hand when I made it so it is shown with some toasted shredded coconut on top but the texture of the coconut is wrong for the pudding. I think that the brown colour from the palm sugar is not ideal - perhaps you could pour a thin layer of sweetened coconut cream on top but this would increase the calories unnecessarily, for those who care about calories.

Cajun Spice Mix

2 tblsp sweet paprika (generous)

2 tblsp onion salt

½ tblsp finely ground black pepper

1–2 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp sumac

Mix together and use to coat fish or chicken.

Blacken fish or chicken in a non-stick pan with a little oil added then bake in oven at ~200C to finish cooking.

Vegetable and Lentil Curry with Whole Spcies

Ingredients & Method:

2 large onions, chopped
In a heavy based pan (preferably enameled cast iron), brown onion slightly in 2 tblsp oil over low heat

4 tsp cummin seeds
3 tsp black mustard seeds

1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
24 fresh curry leaves
Add whole spices to the pan, turn up heat a little and fry until the spices are fragrant and start to pop

3 cloves garlic, chopped
2-4 cm ginger, chopped
Turn down heat, add garlic and ginger to the pan and heat through

2 tsp ground tumeric
3-4 dried chillies, seeds removed then chopped
Stir tumeric and chillies though the onion and spices mix


2 cups red lentils (or use 1 1/2 cups red and 1/2 cup French lentils)
6 fresh tomatoes, each chopped into 8 pieces
Large wedge of Jap pumpkin, chopped into large pieces
Add lentils and vegetables to the pan and stir though, add enough water to cover the lentils then put the lid on the pan and cook over low heat. Stir occasionally and cook until the lentils are soft and the vegetables are tender.

Fresh baby spinach or rocket, roughly chopped
1/2 a bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
Stir the spinach or rocket though just before serving then scatter the fresh coriander on top

This is a great accompaniment to dry beef curry