Ingredient 42 - Kidney Beans

Kidney beans attain their name due to resemblance in both shape and colour to the body organ, the kidney. They are the most common used legume variety, with popularity mainly stemming from their use in ‘chilli con carne.’

Nutritionally these beans are fantastic addition to the diet. They are packed with fibre, protein and vitamins, low in fat, as well as a low glycaemic index.

Kidney beans can be purchased either uncooked or tinned and cooked, just requiring adequate drainage prior to consumption.  These beans however are toxic and must be soaked overnight prior to cooking.

Kidney beans are excellent absorbers of flavours; hence are very tasty when teamed with Mexican seasoning in this recipe.

A quick yet delicious vegetarian dinner!

Quick Mexican Salad for One

1 cup finely shredded red cabbage

100g tofu

½ can kidney beans

1 corn cob

¼ avocado

¼ cup coriander sprigs

2 tbsp taco seasoning

1 tbsp sesame seeds

1 tbsp sour cream, to serve

• Chop tofu into small cubes.
• Drain kidney beans well. Remove corn kernels from cob .
• Heat garlic, olive oil and taco seasoning in frypan over medium-high heat.  Add tofu and pan fry until golden brown.
• Add the kidney beans and sesame seeds, and continue to fry until beans start to crisp.
• To arrange the salad toss the cabbage, corn kernels, coriander and avocado together. Top the salad with tofu and kidney beans and serve with dollop of sour cream.

Ingredient 41 - Chai Seeds

Chai seeds are ancient seeds, dating back to the Aztec era of 3500BC. Here they were considered to be a symbol of life itself, due to the mystical and almost supernatural energy and power they provided.

Chai seeds contain more omega 3 and dietary fibre than any other plant food source., as well providing significant protein.  The seeds have a pleasant nutty taste and are very complimentary, not overpowering at all in flavour.

The seeds are available in black and white forms, however the ‘black’ variety purely contains a combination of black, grey and white with virtually complete similarity in all other properties.

They are a delicious addition to smoothies and cereal, as well as providing a great variant to the traditional sweet shortcrust pastry.

The perfect sweet treat!

Chai seed and Macadamia Sweet Shortcrust with Caramelized Peaches

125g chilled butter, cubed

1 ¾ cup plain flour

½ cup fine caster sugar

2 tbsp black chai seeds

¼ cup macadamias

1 egg yolk

2 tbsp iced cold water

5 yellow peaches

3 tbsp caster sugar

¼ cup mascarpone

250mL thickened cream

• Place butter and flour in a food processor and finely process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Alternately you can use your fingertips!
• Add the chai seeds, macadamias and caster sugar and process until nuts are finely chopped.
• Place the egg yolk and iced water in the blender and pulse a few times, or until mixture comes together. Remove and place on lightly floured surface, kneading for a few minutes until soft, smooth and slightly sticky.
• Form the dough into a ball, wrap in glad wrap and place in the fridge for 20min.
• Preheat oven to 150°.
• Lightly roll the pastry out on very lightly floured surface, forming a roughly shaped disk. Place on a tray lined with baking paper and bake in oven for 20min or until just starting to turn golden brown. Cool.
• Preheat oven grill to low.
• Slice the peaches in half and then slice into moon shaped pieces, approximately 1cm thick.  Place on a small tray, sprinkle with 1tbsp of sugar and grill for 5min. Remove and sprinkle remainder of sugar then grill for further 5min. The peaches should be lovely and caramelized.
• Whip the mascarpone and cream with electric mixers until just starting to stiffen and able holds its shape when spread.
• To serve spread the cream over the cooled shortcrust and top with caramelized peaches. Serve with extra icecream if desired!

Ingredient 40 - Cherries

Cherries are truly seasonal fruits, featuring on kitchen tables mostly from November to January.

The cherry tree will produce its first crop after 6-8 years and will continue to produce edible fruits for up to 100 years. Cherries are picked with care, as they will not ripen post-picking. The stem is also keep intact to the fruit until eating time to prolong its life.

Cherries are a great source of Vitamin C as well as containing many valuable antioxidants to help keep the body healthy. They are also a great nutritional snack with 100g providing only 210kJ.

A simple yet scrumptious Christmas salad!

Roasted Cherry and Goats Cheese Salad

700g cherries

70g pine nuts

1 packet baby spinach leaves

100g goats cheese

3 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 tbsp light olive oil

1 tsp sugar

• Preheat oven to 140°.
• Gently remove seeds from cherries by firstly slicing into hemispheres and then popping out seed with a knife.
• Lay on a baking tray, drizzle with 1 tbsp red wine vinegar and roast in slow oven for 15min.
• Remove the cherries and allow to cool slightly.
• Toast pine nuts in oven for approx. 7min or until golden.
• To make dressing whisk vinegar, oil and sugar together.
• Place the spinach leaves in large shallow bowl, top with cherries, scatter the pine nuts and crumble the goats cheese on top. Drizzle over dressing and toss well to combine.

Ingredient 39 - Mascarpone

Mascarpone is a indulgent triple-creme Italian cheese originating from Lombardy in southern Italy.

It is a very soft and spreadable cheese, extremely rich in taste, reflecting its 75% fat content. Some say that the cows are fed flowers and herbs to produce this distinguishable flavour.

Mascarpone can be used in savoury dishes, accompanying smoked salmon and chives or mixed with anchovies and spices as a spread, but can simply accompany fruit or mixed in with coffee. However it is mostly renowned for its inclusion in the traditional Tiramisu.

The festive season always provides a great excuse to indulge!

Grilled Peaches with Prosciutto and Mascarpone Macadamia topping

Serves 16 as entree

8 yellow peaches

¾ cup whole macadamias

¼ cup honey

8 thin slices prosciutto – roughly 100g

200g Mascarpone

• Half the yellow peaches by slicing and twisting to separate into hemispheres, then remove seed by scooping it out from the flesh gently.
• Preheat fan baked grill to medium-high.
• Place the peaches flat side up on a baking tray. Grill in oven for 10min or until just starting to brown and bubble on top.
• Roughly chop the macadamias. Place in a bowl with the honey and heat in microwave for 30seconds.
• Mix half the honey mixture in with the Mascarpone.
• Divide the slices of prosciutto into half by gently ripping the meat lengthways.
• To assemble wrap a piece of prosciutto around each peach half, spoon some mascarpone mixture on top in the little indents where seed used to live, and dollop remaining honey and macadamia on top.
• Immediately prior to serving place under grill for a couple of minutes to slightly crisp the prosciutto and warm Mascarpone.

Ingredient 38 - Fennel

Fennel is a perennial herb often described as either one’s ‘friend or foe’ depending on your tastebuds!

The herb dates back to ancient Greek time, given the name ‘marathron’ after it was grown on the field of one of the greatest ancient battles fought.

Fennel is quite a versatile ingredient. Its leafy foliage is often used as a base in Italian salads, as well as bulbs baked or eaten raw. Fennel fruits or ‘seeds’ in comparison are quite a unique and strong flavour, resembling that of aniseed, and are mostly used to spice Kashmiri and Guharati cooking.

Shop for bulbs with a clean, firm and solid appearance with no signs of bruising or splitting. The bulbs should be whitish or pale green in colour and leafs bright green.

Enjoy this summer salad!

Shredded Chicken, Fennel and Grape Salad

Serves 4

3 chicken breasts

1 tsp minced garlic

1 chicken stock cube

juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp lemon rind

3 baby fennel

½ white onion

½ bunch flat leaf parsley

1 ½ cups seedless green grapes

Dressing:

2 tbsp capers – drained

2 tsp Dijon mustard

½ tsp minced garlic

4 tsp light olive oil

salt + pepper

• Bring to boil a large saucepan of water. Add chicken stock cube and minced garlic and stir to dissolve. Place chicken breasts in saucepan and poach for 15-20min or until cooked through. Remove and cool slightly
• Thinly slice the baby fennel. Heat a good dollop of olive oil, lemon rind and 1tbsp lemon juice in small saucepan and sauté fennel for 5min or until just wiltered but still firm with crunch.
• Thinly slice the white onion, halve the grapes and roughly chop the flat leaf parsley.
• Once the chicken is cool gently shred the breast with your fingers, pulling small pieces of breast in the direction of the cut to form long thin strands.
• To arrange the salad place the salad ingredients in a large bowl, top with chicken and toss well to combine. Drizzle with dressing and serve immediately.
• To make the dressing roughly chop the capers and place in a bottle with the mustard, olive oil, remaining lemon juice and garlic. Shake well to combine and season with salt and pepper

Ingredient 37 - Beer

Beer is one of the most widely consumed beverages across the world with the average human being drinking 13,248 beers in their lifetime.

Beer in culinary dishes dates back centuries to mid-1500s to Europe, in particular Germany and England. Today it is most famously recognized for beer battered fish and chips, or even the odd creation the Beer-can Chicken.

Beer has been described as adding a whole new dimension of flavor to a recipe, with it flavoring food by either the bitterness from the hops, sweetness from the malt and yeasty bite from its creation via fermentation process.

Here it adds a lovely twist to a prawn pizza. Any male should be salivating right now!

Beer marinated Prawn Pizza

Pizza base

Makes 1 thick base or 2 thin

1 satchet dried yeast

1 tsp caster sugar

¾ cup lukewarm water

1 ½ cup plain white flour

pinch salt

• Place the lukewarm water in a small bowl and sprinkle the yeast and sugar on top. Let it stand for 20 minutes or until top is looking ‘frothy’.
• Prepare the bench top for kneading by wiping it down, sprinkling it with plain flour and having 1 cup of flour on standby.
• Combine flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour the yeast mixture in. Firstly use a fork to combine the ingredients, then use your hands so it comes together well.
• Turn onto the floured bench and use as much flour as necessary to bring into a firm ball.
• Begin the kneading process – this should take around 20 minutes in total. Take the ball of dough, place your heel in the centre and then push your heel away from you. Turn the dough 45 degrees and then repeat the ‘pushing the heel away’ process. Once a complete circle has been done, fold the dough over and repeat the process again. You may find that more flour needs to be added as you knead if you find the dough too sticky.
• Once satisfied with the kneading, form the dough into a ball, place it in a clean bowl and cover with glad wrap. Let it rest for 2 hours or until doubled in size.
• Take the dough out of the bowl and knead for a further 5 minutes, adding more flour if necessary. Divide dough into 2 portions and place one aside.
• Roll the ball out forming a warped ‘authentic’ pizza base.

Topping - for 1 pizza

16 medium green prawns

¼ cup light beer – my pick Coopers Clear

2 red capsicums

1 long red chilli

2 tbsp tomato paste

grated cheese – approx. 1 cup

¾ cup raw cashews

• Finely chop the chilli, trim the heads and tails off the prawns and devein them gently. Place beer, chilli and prawns in a bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Marinate in the fridge for 45min.
• Preheat fan forced grill. Slice the capsicums in half and remove the stem and seeds. Place on a baking tray and grill until the skin is charred and blistered.
• Place capsicums in a plastic bag, seal, and leave to cool for 15 minutes. Peel the skins off the capsicum and discard; the skins should literally fall off gently by this stage.
• Chop the capsicum finely into small pieces as possible and place in a bowl. Roughly chop ½ cup cashew nuts and mix in well with the capsicum. Alternately use a blender and pulse the mixture until a rough paste forms.
• Preheat fan-forced oven to 200°.
• Heat the garlic and olive oil in a frypan over medium heat, then cook the prawns for approx. 1min or until coloured and tails are curled. The prawns just need to be seared, as they will cook completely in the oven.
• Prepare the pizza by spreading the tomato paste over the base. Sprinkle with as much grated cheese as desired. Spread the capsicum mixture across the cheese, arrange the prawns on top and sprinkle with remaining cashew nuts.
• Cook the pizza in oven for 15min or until deliciously browned and bases crispy.

Ingredient 36 - Pickled Lime

Pickled lime is a staple Indian ingredient renowned for its sharp and concentrated flavour.

It can be prepared in the kitchen, with limes requiring an overnight soak in salt to extract their bitterness. It can also be more simply purchased at the supermarket!

Here pickled lime takes a twist on its usual use, being partnered with mango and yoghurt to accompany a deliciously healthy Indian dinner.

Enjoy!

Pan-fried fish on Lentils and Corn with Pickled lime relish

Serves 4

4 small fillets firm white fish

3 cobs corn

2 cups red lentils

1 cup chicken stock

3 cups water – approximately

2 tsp minced ginger

2 tbsp sweet paprika

Pickled lime relish

1/2 cup natural yoghurt

2 tbsp pickled lime

2 tbsp chopped mint

1 mango cheek

• Bring to boil water and chicken stock in large saucepan. Add the lentils and cook for 10-15 min until still firm but just tender. Drain well and rinse under cold water.
• Remove corn kernels off cobs.
• Heat olive oil in deep pan. Add ginger and sauté until fragrant. Add the corn kernels and continue to sauté until kernels are bright yellow.
• Add the lentils and paprika and continue to sauté for few minutes.
• Heat pan over medium-high heat. Fry fish for 3-5min on each side until golden. Place on tray and cook for further 10min in oven until just cooked.
• To make the relish, roughly chop the pickled lime and mint. Take the mango cheek and with a sharp knife slice grid lines into mango then scoop the flesh out with a spoon. Mix the mango, yoghurt, pickled lime and mint together in a bowl. Keep in fridge until ready for serving.
• To serve spoon lentils and corn on a plate, top with fillet of fish and spoon over some relish.