Bruschetta...

Bruschetta...that ends up in your mouth, not all over your top or the carpet.

Do you find that when you bite into bruschetta, all the tomato and onion falls off the bread and ends up all over you or the floor? Then this recipe is for you...

Bruschetta

Crusty Italian Bread

Eggplant

Tomatoes

Red Onion

Basil Leaves

Garlic

Olive Oil

Balsamic Vinegar

Salt and Pepper

Slice Eggplant thinly, drizzle with olive oil and grill on a hot pan. Slice Bread, drizzle with olive oil and grill on a hot pan. When the bread is nice a crispy, take a garlic clove and rub over the bread. Layer eggplant, sliced red onion, and sliced tomato on each piece of bread. Drizzle with good quality Balsamic Vinegar and then top with basil leaves.

Add some grilled Hamouli Cheese to this bruschetta if you'd like to make it more of a meal for lunch rather then a snack or an appetiser.

Something to share...

The other night Amy from work came around for dinner and I created a plate to share...it involved minimal cooking as the night was quiet hot, but it had maximum impact!

The plate contained; salmon mouse with prawns, roast pumpkin salad, marinated baby octopus, grilled Hamouli cheese, roast capsicum, sun dried tomatoes and marinated artichoke.

Marinated Baby Octopus

12 baby octopus

3 tablespoons sweet chili sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon coriander stems (finely sliced)

Salt

Whisk together the marinade in a medium size bowl and then coat the baby octopus. Place in the fridge and leave for at least 2 hours, over night is best. Grill the octopus on a HOT grill plate. Remember if you over cook the octopus they will become tough, so remove when they begin to curl.

Grilled Hamouli Cheese

200g Hamouli cheese

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon garlic

Heat olive oil in a hot pan and add crushed garlic. Place the thinly sliced Hamouli cheese in the pan and drizzle lemon juice over the top. Once the cheese starts to brown, flip and brown the other side.

Serve with crusty bread...yummy yummy

Roast Pumpkin Salad

After a day in the pool at Jame's apartment...we needed something quick and easy to fill our tummy's. This salad is great as it only requires ingredients that you'll have in your kitchen all the time.

Roast Pumpkin Salad

400g pumpkin

1 bag of baby spinach

200g feta cheese

100g slithered almonds and pine nuts

2 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon french mustard

Thinly slice the pumpkin and place in a baking dish with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Roast in a 200 degree oven for 20 minutes. Add the almonds and pine nuts to the baking dish and roast for a further 5 minutes. Spread the baby spinach on a plate, top with pumpkin, crumbled feta cheese, almonds and pine nuts. In a cup whisk together 1 tablespoon olive oil, lemon juice and fresh mustard. Drizzle over the top of the salad.

New Age Prawn Cocktail...

Yet again, another yummy and simple summer recipe... The idea is to use simple, great quality ingredients and add lots of friends for a awesome evening.

Prawn Stack
500g fresh Australian prawns
2 avocados
2 nectarines
4 shallots
1 bunch of coriander
1 lime

Slice avocado and place a 3cm disc on each plate. Slice the nectarines and build another 3cm disc on top. Peel prawns and divide evenly on top of each stack. Top with thinly sliced shallots and coriander leaves. Placing a few lime wedges on the side.

Cocktail Sauce
1 punnet cherry tomatoes
5 baby brown onions
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
1/4 cup of good quality mayonnaise

In a small saucepan combine cherry tomatoes, brown onions, brown sugar, and olive oil. Cook down the mix until soft and is able to be mashed into a smooth consistency. Remove the sauce from the heat and leave to cool. Once cool add Tabasco sauce, lemon juice and mayonnaise. Drizzle over the top of the prawn stack.

Salmon Moose

This is one of my favourite recipes and it's really simple...


1/2 cup hot water
1 tablespoon gelatine
1 chicken stock cube
220g can of red salmon
4 shallots
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 cup cream
salt, pepper


Dissolve gelatine in the hot water. Place the salmon in a blender/food processor and blend until broken. Add chicken stock, shallots, mayonnaise, and cream blend for 3 minutes. Add the gelatine, lemon juice, salt and pepper and blend for another 2 minutes. At this stage, the moose should be smooth and creamy - if it is not blend for another 2 minutes. Pour into four small bowls and refrigerate.

Simple...but Fabulous

This soup is dedicated to my favourite American exchange students, Mallory Ichikawa and Taryn Hickey...

Bacon, Potato and Leak Soup
6 rashes of bacon (rind removed)
1 large leak
6 large potatoes
2 tablespoons of chicken stock (dry)
2 teaspoons of butter
Salt and Pepper to taste

Slice bacon into thin strips and add to a hot pot. When the bacon is cook (note not too crispy), add the leak and the butter. Roughly chop the potato into cubes and add to the pot. Cover with water, then stir in the chicken stock. Simmer for 30 minutes.

You can either serve this soup chucky or put it through a food processor/blender and make it nice and smooth.