Haloumi rolls with eggplant, zucchini and capsicum relish

We recently had a spring fair fundraiser at my oldest boy's school. I volunteered to run a vegetarian food stall. Given the popularity of the ubiquitous sausage sizzle, it seemed both fitting and prudent to set up a BBQ alongside it and dish up a vegetarian alternative. After giving it some thought I came up with barbecued eggplant, zucchini and haloumi in a bun with a tangy capsicum relish. The saltiness of the caramelised haloumi was nicely balanced by the sharpness of the vinegar in the otherwise sweet capsicum relish. As there was so much flavour coming from those two ingredients, the zucchini and eggplant were merely lightly basted with olive oil and barbecued until nicely coloured. They lent a lovely, smoky mellowness to the mix.

I was so pleased that the vegetarian BBQ was well-received, with rave reviews pouring in from many people who were excited to see a delicious alternative to a sausage on a roll with sauce.

I am looking forward to playing around with this combination for my own barbecues, perhaps exploring some spice concoctions such as za'atar, chermoula or harissa. Another way forward could be to add some heat to the relish and perhaps freshen the roll up with some raw leaves like rocket. 

Do you have a favourite, go-to, meatless barbecue dish?

Vietnamese noodle salad

On a hot Spring day after a very late night out with my lady friends I am feeling like eating something quick, satisfying and reasonably virtuous. Yearning for the fresh, clean flavours of Vietnamese I search the internet and find a recipe for just the kind of noodle salad I am craving from a blog called Low Fat Vegan Chef. I follow the recipe pretty closely, substituting the vegan fish sauce with light soy and a scant teaspoon of miso. I also use bean thread noodles rather than rice noodle vermicelli. Inspiration strikes when I recall one time eating a rather naughty vegetarian noodle salad dish packed full of deep-fried vegetable spring rolls at a city Vietnamese restaurant and find the (rather disappointing) leftover cocktail vegetable spring rolls from a recent party in my freezer. I bake a few of them, cut them in half and throw them into the salad. They are transformed from dodgy supermarket blandness into awesome-dressing-soaked crunchy treasures in a flavour-packed, textural, sensational dish!

Fig and hazelnut sourdough

I decided to play around with flavours in this week's sourdough effort. I used my wholegrain spelt/rye/wholegrain starter to make sourdough as normal and when it came to kneading, I added 100g of chopped, dried figs and 40g of whole, skinned hazelnuts. I expected the loaf to come out a bit flat or small due to the retarding action of the fruit and nuts on the wild yeasts but was pleasantly surprised to find this wasn't the case. I ate some this morning, toasted, with vintage cheddar cheese on top. (My cheeky partner thinks I'm a weirdo!)

Make your own bircher muesli

Like many vegetarians, I have more than a passing interest in nutrition. One blog that I found myself returning to again and again is Limes and Lycopene, the blog of Sydney nutritionist and food writer Kathryn Elliot, Kathryn's blog contains a plethora of information and practical advice on eating well in a busy life. Two of the best things I have learnt from her blog and applied in my life are the 50/25/25 rule and her recipe for muesli.

I waxed lyrical in a previous post about my love for Nut Roasters, the source of much of my pantry. This muesli is one way I put their dried fruits, seeds and nuts to good use. I enjoy mine topped with Jalna yoghurt.

Bircher muesli

Makes approximately 18 servings of 75g

6 cups rolled oats
2 cups puffed brown rice
1.5 cups almonds
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup chopped dried apricot
1 cup chopped dried apple
3/4 cup sunflower kernels
3/4 cup pepitas
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

In the largest bowl you have (in my case, a giant plastic punch bowl), combine all ingredients.

Store in an airtight container.

Yo ho let's go!

For the boys' 7th and 5th birthday party the theme was pirate. It tied in nicely with the international Talk Like a Pirate Day on 19 September. It was also a fantastic excuse for all the grown-ups to outdo each other with pirate costumes and antics. I never predicted the theme would be embraced with such gusto nor did I expect so many people to have an abundance of pirate paraphernalia stored away in their cupboards just begging for another day in the sun!

This year I went back to basics. Instead of going for an elaborate picture cake I made a simple treasure chest. I prepared double the recipe of my birthday cake standard, Nigella's sour cream chocolate cake, putting about a third of the mixture in one large loaf tin and the remaining two thirds in another, identical loaf tin. The smaller cake took approximately half an hour to cook while the larger cake took about one hour. The smaller cake became the lid of the treasure chest by turning it upside down and trimming the long edges off of it using a carving knife angled at approximately 45 degrees to the cake. These offcuts were later used to help prop the lid open. The larger cake, right side up (not inverted), became the bottom of the chest. Both the trimmed top and bottom cakes were iced with a delicious chocolate buttercream. I used Arnott's chocolate funsticks to make a border around the top of each cake. The top of the treasure chest was propped open by laying the offcuts from the top cake along one long edge of the bottom cake (the "hinge") and using wooden skewers further in front for added support. I used Chico lollies (pressed face-first into the icing) to make keyholes. To add a bit of sparkle on top, I removed the chocolate from some chocolate coated honeycomb pieces, placed the honeycomb in a sandwich bag and crushed it using a rolling pin. Voila, gold dust! All that was left to do was stuff the chest full of chocolate coins. These were snatched with alarming speed upon cutting the cake!

I was happy with how it all came together and particularly pleased to be presenting a cake containing no food colouring. Aaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggh!

Pimp my loaf

Last Saturday I experienced a 2 hour sourdough masterclass at Bourke St Bakery in Marrickville. It was a great, hands-on class where the enthusiastic instructors took us through the process of making, shaping and baking sourdough as well as making and caring for sourdough starter. After my preliminary adventures in making a sourdough starter and baking bread it was fantastic to have the opportunity to come to the session armed with questions that were all answered. Not only were they generous with their knowledge, they were generous with their bread and accoutrements. We all left with several cooked breads (plain and fruit/nut), uncooked, shaped loaves in proving baskets lined with cloths, a coffee cup filled with our starter and spiked with the good stuff (their own 10-year-old starter) and a snazzy black Bourke St Bakery shoulder bag.

The biggest lesson I took away from the session was how to shape dough into a ball and then a batard. I also asked about how to ensure the bread lifts as it rises rather than spreading outwards, as was my experience with some of the sourdough I had been producing. After establishing that the likely cause was using a dough that was too wet, I was advised to hold back on some of the water. I took this advice on board and as you can see, my loaves are looking lovelier than ever!

I now have 2 starters in my fridge: my original blend of wholemeal, spelt and rye flours and my new organic white Bourke St Bakery starter. Between this and my recent flour delivery, life is good for this bread nerd!

I gotsta be startin' somethin'

Bread and I are no strangers. I have been known to bake the odd loaf, several focaccia and countless pizzas. I have played with spelt, dabbled in rye and covered myself in wholemeal flour. The results varied considerably and I learnt a lot in the process. However, what all of these loaves had in common was the inclusion of that magical ingredient: commercial yeast. I had yet to attempt my favourite bread, the complex, tangy, crusty, dense, chewy deliciousness of sourdough.

I have always wanted to try my hand at sourdough, but felt intimidated by the long process and concerned that making and maintaining starter would involve the strictest of culinary chemistry. One day my love of food TV and latent desire collided in the first episode of River Cottage Australia, when chef Paul West christened his River Cottage experience with the making of a starter and eventually, River Cottage sourdough. It took me over a year to finally try it but when I did, I followed Paul's process to the letter and the results, I think, speak for themselves.

The starter now lives in a wide-mouthed, loosely capped jar in the refrigerator. I view it as a fairly low-maintenance pet. Each week I take it out, let it come up to room temperature and start bubbling (it's ALIVE!!!). Then I feed it by discarding half and whisking in half a cup of equal parts rye, wholemeal spelt and wholemeal flours and approximately the same amount of water. What happens next depends on whether I am baking a loaf or not. If I am not baking, I put the starter back in the fridge for another week. If I am baking, I leave the starter out of the fridge to bubble up a second time before using around half to make my sponge (refer to the recipe in the link above) and feeding the remaining starter in the manner just described. Then I put the jar of starter back in the fridge. Over the course of 1-2 days, the sponge I made will become a dough and the dough will be stretched and shaped a few times before the much anticipated loaf is complete. I can attest that there is no better bread-related sensory experience than the smell and taste of the freshly baked loaf.

I have made this bread 5 times now and there is no end in sight.

Banana muffins with walnut topping

Whenever bananas are cheap and plentiful in our house they often end up ripening faster than we can eat them. I retire the spotted, squishy suspects to the freezer where they await resurrection in one form or another. Here is the latest use I made of them, based on Bill Granger's melt and mix banana bread, tweaked by replacing sour cream with low fat Greek yoghurt, almonds with walnuts and presenting in muffin form.

Banana muffins with walnut topping

Makes 16

45g brown sugar
80g walnuts, chopped
255ml low-fat Greek yoghurt
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
100g butter, melted
200g caster sugar
2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
250g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
250g mashed banana (about 2 medium bananas)

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line two standard muffin tins with paper cases. In a bowl, mix together the brown sugar and walnuts and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the yoghurt and bicarbonate of soda, leave to stand for 5 minutes, then stir in the melted butter, caster sugar and eggs. Sift the flour, baking powder and cinnamon into another bowl. Gradually fold in the yoghurt mixture, followed by the mashed bananas.

Spoon mixture evenly into prepared tins and sprinkle the brown sugar mixture on top. Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of a muffin near the centre of the tin comes out clean. Set aside to cool in the tins for about 5 minutes, then remove muffins and place onto a wire rack to cool completely.

On being nuts and the Condiment That Must Not Be Named

I have an embarrassing confession. I am a lover of condiments but I absolutely, positively loathe mayonnaise (and its Italian cousin, aioli). I have for as long as I can remember. Even writing those words makes me cringe. The sight of it turns my stomach. It also has a way of finding me wherever I go (even south-east Asia). Such is my phobia that my long-suffering partner (husband, now, actually, but more on that later) can attest to the number of times he has asked, when ordering a vegetarian sandwich, burger or salad on my behalf, "does it contain mayonnaise?". This is often met with an obliging "no, but we can put some on it for you" to which he has to reply (with frantic waving of his hands) "no, no—please no, she doesn't eat it/is allergic/cannot stand it—I am just making sure it isn't on it". If the desired meal does contain the offending condiment, asking for it to be removed is a risky business. I would estimate that out of the times I have ordered food without mayonnaise, one out of three of those dishes were found upon closer inspection to contain it anyway. We create what we fear.

However, the thing about sauces in the "M" category is that they do add a new dimension of flavour, creaminess and moisture that can really complete a meal, so alternatives must be sought. The solution lies in nuts and seeds. I have previously posted about my love for Nut Roasters, a local store that is what its name says and so much more. They recently linked from their Facebook page to an excellent article by Claire Claire Adas that: (1) makes me feel less crazy for having a mayonnaise phobia and more importantly, (2) contains several tempting recipes for similar condiments made with nuts. I can't wait to try them!

http://www.npr.org/2014/03/26/294339184/the-secret-to-these-sauces-is-nuts

Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom

Another year, another birthday cake project...for the boys' 6th and 4th birthday party we went closer to having a theme than ever before: Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom (a funny, cute animated show by the makers and voices of Peppa Pig). We placed bunting around the trampoline, set up various tents and crawl tunnels to represent Gaston's cave, made elf hats simply by stapling cardboard leaves to party hats and crowns out of yellow cardboard. Our frangipani, once embellished with cardboard windows, doubled as the Great Elf Tree. Lolly bags (yes, we went there!) were filled with bug stickers, mint leaves, freckles, a jelly cup, fairy floss and a ladybird chocolate.

For the cake, I stuck with my tried and tested frozen butter cream transfer method. I spent a good couple of nights working on the different shades of icing for the picture of Ben, Holly and Gaston. Over the course of a week (an epic undertaking!) I gradually outlined and filled each character before covering the back of the transfers with the blue and green icing that would form the top of the cake.

I used the same Nigella sour cream chocolate cake recipe as in previous years. I was pleased with the results but once again cursed myself for not getting hold of a narrower tip for the finer details like the eyes and eyelashes. Learning from my last attempt at this method, I managed to get the transfers a bit thinner than the superhero transfers I made last year.

For a little variety, I made lemon butter cake mini cupcakes. Some of these were iced red and covered with upside down dark chocolate chips to suggest ladybirds, the others were iced pink and covered with upside down white chocolate chips to represent toadstools. Overall, the spread would have met with Nanny Plum's approval.

Raspberry and coconut pancakes

On Saturday I decided to play around  with an old favourite - pancakes. Normally I'd either make plain or blueberry pancakes. In this recipe, the usual plain milk is replaced with light coconut milk and the blueberries are substituted with frozen raspberries. If you are short on time, you can skip separating the eggs and beating the whites (makes them less fluffy, but just as delicious). With a little lime zest and a trickle of maple syrup, these made a party in our mouths and tummies.

Raspberry and coconut pancakes

Serves 4

2 cups plain flour + 4 teaspoons baking powder (or 2 cups self-raising flour)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 eggs
1 x 50g sachet of coconut milk power
500ml water (100ml hot/400ml not)
1 cup frozen raspberries
1 teaspoon lime zest
Small amounts of butter for frying
Maple syrup, for serving

Set oven to a low temperature (100 degrees Celsius), for keeping cooked pancakes warm.

Combine flour, baking powder and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Make a well for the wet ingredients.

Place coconut milk powder in a small jug and add hot water, stirring to make a smooth paste. Add remaining water and stir to make coconut milk. Add zest.

Separate eggs, placing the yolks in the jug with the milk and the whites in a clean bowl. Beat yolks and milk with a fork until combined. Whisk whites to soft peaks (I use the whisk attachment on my stick blender).

Add milk/yolk mixture to dry ingredients and gently mix until just combined. Gently fold in raspberries and egg whites.

Heat a heavy-based frying pan with a small amount of butter over a medium heat. Dollop approx 2 tablespoons of mixture and per pancake and swirl to flatten to a round shape. Flip them over when they bubble in the middle. Transfer cooked pancakes to an ovenproof dish (I use a corningware dish with a lid), cover and store in oven as you cook each batch.

Nut Roasters

When I was pregnant with our second child, my partner and I looked around as our 16 month old wrought havoc on the midfloor, two bedroom flat we had purchased scarcely more than16 months before and realised our days of living there were numbered. That Marrickville flat was our first foray into home ownership (ie, major debt), precipitated by my first pregnancy and a desire to stay geographically accessible to our circle of friends. We crunched the numbers and realised that we could (just) afford to buy a modestly-priced house if we (sharp intake of breath) doubled our mortgage and looked further afield. A few months and several house viewings later, we found ourselves buying a 3-4 bedroom, free-standing home on a tidy block on a quiet, cul-de-sac street in an unfamiliar suburb about a 10 minute drive from where we used to live: Belmore.

Not long after we moved in, one of our lovely new neighbours (an elderly Greek lady) told us about a shop a short walk away where she buys her olives and cheese. Keen to explore, I went to investigate. That it was love at first sight seems inadequate to the experience; it was more of a spiritual awakening. Nut Roasters in Roselands was the first food-related discovery that made me feel excited about our new neighbourhood. This family-owned business has been hand-roasting nuts in copper barrels for over thirty years. Apart from the wide range of delicious nuts, Nut Roasters sells a vast array of foods including olives, dried fruits, cheeses, legumes, grains, seeds, spices and Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and other specialty foods.

A mere glance at my kitchen reveals my reliance on Nut Roasters as purveyor of my family's dietary staples. In my pantry are numerous bags of their lentils (red, brown and French), beans (glossy, deep red kidney; shiny, purple-black turtle; pretty, speckled borlotti; pristine white and plump, blonde chickpeas), dried fruit (raisins, apricots, apples and currants), cous cous and pearl barley. There is a large flagon of extra virgin olive oil that has served us well for months, as well as tins of Italian tomatoes, Spanish artichokes and Lebanese dips, a bottle of pomegranate molasses and generous bags of various fresh spices. My refrigerator boasts a Nut Roasters bounty of nuts (pine nuts - they have several varieties, hazelnuts, peanuts, almonds and walnuts), seeds (chia, sesame, pepitas, sunflower and nigella), quinoa (white and tri-colour), haloumi, feta and free-range eggs. I also have jars of tahini, mustard, relishes (including the novel and delicious Bomb Serres and a fiery brand of harissa, both pictured), sundried tomato and the plumpest, juiciest Kalmatta olives I have ever encountered. My family had a long-standing obsession with Susu's Bircher Muesli (pictured; they also make natural and toasted varieties); now I make my own blend using their dried apricots, golden raisins, dried apples, pepitas and sunflower kernels. Other less frequent purchases I make at Nut Roasters include Belgian chocolate, fruit and nut squares and various snack foods to help cater for parties and festive occasions.

Clearly, I could go on. Shopping at Nut Roasters remains one of my favourite domestic activities. I highly recommend you go there and, like the locals, get right into it!

Nut Roasters is open 8am to 5:30pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 4:30pm on Saturdays and 8am to 1pm on Sundays.

79-81 Chapel Street  Roselands NSW 2196,  (02) 9759 1206.

Bloodwood

For my birthday this year I received a great gift from good friends of mine - vouchers to dine at Bloodwood, in Newtown. Things being as they are when you have young kids and limited access to babysitting it took until my partner's birthday (3 months later) before we got there. We had been pre-warned about lengthy waits due to Bloodwood's popularity and policy of not taking reservations for parties of less than 8. It being Wednesday, we were reasonably confident this would not be an issue. As it turned out, shortly after arriving we were seated at a table for two in close quarters with our like-numbered co-diners. The few vacant tables there were filled within the next hour. 

Bloodwood is industrial, yet intimate, with interesting recycled glass, wood and metal suspended from the ceiling and comfortable cushions and soft lighting closer to the floor. With plates designed for sharing, a substantial portion of the menu is vegetarian. We began with rum cocktails (their list is exciting and extensive) and wonderfully tangy luxe light rye sour dough bread ($3). Following the insistence of friends who had dined there previously (and a work colleague who happened to be there that night), we ordered the polenta chips with gorgonzola sauce ($9). They were everything a good chip should be - chunky, salty, crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside. As a fan of fromage but not so much the blue variety, I was initially hesitant about dipping into the gorgonzola sauce. I was quickly converted, enjoying its creamy piquancy against the chips.

Next, my partner tucked into some swordfish carpaccio ($18) while I enjoyed the lion's share of the socca - chickpea pancake, spiced pumpkin, quinoa, persian fetta, fresh herbs ($18). Its unassuming presentation as a nicely constructed pumpkin pizza belied its complexity. It was assertive in musky, spiced flavour and interesting in texture, thanks to the besan in the crust and the feathery, fresh dill. Our last savoury dish was the baked mushrooms served in paper with red wine, garlic, cream and farro ($18), a rich combination of exotic mushrooms, creamy, garlic wine sauce and a sprinkle of chewy grains. They were simply outstanding, but we sorely needed something to soak up the glorious sauce (the sour dough would have done nicely, but I made do with the spoon).

To complete our celebration, we needed dessert. Once again, a recommendation from a work colleague (my parter's this time - is there anyone who hasn't been here and loved something?) dictated ordering the Bloodwood trifle ($14), comprised of poor man's orange, pound cake, port wine jelly, champagne anglaise, yoghurt mascarpone. Our first choice, however, was immediately obvious to both of us - chocolate, caramel peanut torte with banana mousse ($14). Foolishly, we tasted the torte first and then greed got the better of us and we inhaled it in its entirety. It was rich, sweet, bitter and luscious with dark chocolate, savoury, crunchy and salty with peanuts, smoky and fragrant with caramel and banana...the poor trifle didn't stand a chance. It was nice, and probably would have garnered more appreciation had we eaten it before its decadent companion, but as things played out, it was no match.

Overall, we were very happy with our dining experience. Apart from the high standards reached by the food, the service was exemplary - polite, attentive (our water glasses never fell below a quarter full) yet unobtrusive.

Bloodwood is located at 416 king st. newtown 2042 - (+61 2) 9557 7699.  It is open 5pm onwards on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Mondays and from midday onwards onwards on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (closing at 10pm on Sundays). It is closed Tuesdays.

Superheroama

 Another year, another combined birthday party for my boys, another cake-decorating challenge! Ben got in early and requested a Spiderman cake for his 5th birthday. Toby, who was turning 3, kept to the theme by asking for a Batman cake. The bar had officially been raised. My spidersense told me I'd be needing some black, black and more black icing. Holy trip to the cake decorating supply shop,  Batman!

During the compulsory internet research phase of  this project, I discovered that colouring icing black is hard work. Knowing that I'd be using it for outline as well as colouring the inside of the batman logo, I went for ready-made Wiltons black icing. I also purchased blue, red and yellow gel colours for colouring my buttercream icing, as with a small squeeze they produce much truer, brighter colours than floods of their liquid, supermarket counterparts.

I came to the conclusion a while ago that although it is a great product for moulding and decorating purposes, I am not a big fan of the taste (or texture) of fondant icing, particularly when used in large quantities. This year I tried a new technique - frozen buttercream transfers. As seen in the third photo, you begin by finding a template for your design (colouring-in pages are great, as are image searches on the internet). I taped the templates to a flat surface (a baking tray), covered them with wax paper (uncommon in Australia, but can be bought at Coles), and also secured that with tape. Using a No. 2 icing tip (the smallest in my set) and coupler on the tube of black icing, I outlined the designs. This took a long time, especially the Spiderman, which would have benefitted from a No. 1 tip as the design is rather detailed! After leaving the outline to dry a bit, I filled the outlines with coloured icing using a piping bag. During both phases, I used a fine paint brush to gently press down on any lifted areas as I went. Finally, I covered the entire area of each transfer with the colour I was using to ice the cakes - a soft shade of yellow. This was to protect the surface of the iced cakes from any colour bleeds once I applied the transfers. I used a small, angled spatula to gently smooth the final icing layer on the transfers before placing the tray in the freezer. Once complete, buttercream transfers can be left in the freezer for up to 24 hours. Before I even started the process, I had baked, cooled and iced the cakes and left them in the refrigerator for the party the next day.

About half an hour before serving, I took my iced cakes out of the fridge and removed the transfers from the freezer. For each transfer, I untaped the wax paper, lifted the transfer up off of the tray and gently flipped the frozen design over on to one of my hands while peeling off the wax paper with the other. Then I placed the transfer onto the cake. Overall, I was very impressed with the quality of the images (I had thought Superman could turn out to be a spectacular fail). The transfers were a little thick and stood up from the cakes, but this could have been disguised with some decorative piping had I the time or any remaining icing! I imagine that with practice, I could produce a thinner transfer.

The boys were very chuffed with their superhero cakes - mission accomplished (for another year)!

Jamie's Italian

For my 40th birthday, my partner and I were looking for somewhere new to try for a special, childless (!) lunch on a day we would otherwise be at work. After canvassing various options, we decided to try out Jamie's Italian, near the corner of Pitt and Hunter Streets in Sydney. As usual, I looked at various reviews of the restaurant and found they ran the gamut from bemusement ("waited too long for average food") through to culinary rapture ("best...pasta....ever!"). Knowing we couldn't book, we chose to arrive near the start of lunch service (11:30ish). There was no queue (hurray!). We were shown to our upstairs table by a friendly waiter, left to peruse the menu while taking in the low lighting, graffitied walls and the bustling kitchen below. Then the feasting began in earnest.

To start, we had Vegetable antipasti for 2 ($10 each), fetchingly laid out on a wooden plank atop two large, rustic tins of Italian tomatoes. As seen in the first photo, the spread included bruschetta topped with eggplant capanata; buffalo mozarella with olive oil, chilli and herbs; grilled, marinated and pickled vegies (eggplant, fennel, capsicum, Sicilian green olives, mild chillies & caper berries); Italian coleslaw (shaved root vegetables with chilli, lemon & mint) and pecorino on flatbread with chilli jam. The variety was great and on the whole, it was a tasty introduction to what lay ahead.

When the opportunity to eat stuffed zucchini flowers presents itself, I must act on it. To wit, we shared a special entree (second photo) - Courgette fritti - zucchini flowers stuffed with fresh ricotta, smoked mozarella with a rocket pesto on a bed of roasted tomatoes ($14). For me, this was the dish of the day. Sublime!

For main course, I had to try the fresh pasta. It was gratifying to have a few different vegetarian choices. I ended up settling on the Pumpkin panzerotti - homemade half moons filled with roasted pumpkin, ricotta
& parmesan served with chilli, rosemary butter sauce & crushed amaretti  ($12.50 entree/$19.50 main). It was the crushed ameretti biscuits that drew me in - I love a good savoury/sweet combination. The pasta was well-made and the flavours were good. My partner, feeling he should order the pasta, sheepishly went for the Burger Italiano ($19.50) - Wagga Wagga beef with fontina cheese, salami, soft lettuce, tomato salsa, dill pickles, chilli & fried onions. The look on his face confirmed that he had indeed been transported to Burger Heaven.

The Italian beer was good, too!

Overall, we both really enjoyed our food. It is not a fine-dining establishment, but that was not what we were looking for. It was comforting, familiar food, but at the same time, special. There are also (happily) enough compelling vegetarian options on the menu to make me look forward to going back to Jamie's Italian for more.

Happy birthday to me!

Parsnip, cheddar and dill soup

In my early twenties I thought I wanted to be an academic when I grew up. I studied philosophy at graduate school at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, USA. Two years into the five year program I came back to Australia for a break and never went back. To this day, the most enduring memories I have of Ithaca and Cornell are not of Descartes et al but of food - cooking fresh pasta with my fabulous house-mates, being inspired by the excellent seasonal produce at Ludgate farm market and, while on campus, savouring the fresh soup of the day at Temple of Zeus, a cafe in Goldwin Smith Hall. Zeus has a prolific range of tasty soups, recipes for which can be found on their website. What follows is my interpretation of one of my favourite Zeus soups - Cheddar Parsnip - scaled down from commercial proportions, lightened with light milk and less cheese and brightened with the addition of fresh dill right at the end of the cooking process.

Parsnip, cheddar and dill soup

Serves 4

1 tablespoon sunflower oil

1 medium onion, diced

1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 small carrot, diced

1 rib celery, diced (optional)

500g parsnip, peeled and cubed

500g potato, peeled and cubed

1 cup (approx 100g) grated mature cheddar

1 cup low-fat milk

2 tablespoons chopped, fresh dill

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to season

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and saute the onion for 5 minutes or until transparent. Add the carrot, celery (if using) and caraway seeds, sauteing for another 5 minutes or until the vegetables have all softened. Add the parsnip and potato and enough hot water to cover the contents of the saucepan. Cover, bring to the boil, lower heat to a fast simmer, cover again and leave to cook for about 15 minutes or until all of the vegetables are fully cooked.

Add the grated cheese, milk and dill to the saucepan and blend the contents with a stick blender until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Apple and cinnamon wholemeal muffins

This recipe developed out of a desire for afternoon tea and a need to use up the growing collection of barely eaten apples (courtesy of a toddler whose eyes are often bigger than his stomach) in my fridge. These muffins are substantial, full of fibre and low in sugar and fat. Fortunately, they are also tasty and I love the way they fill my house with the tantalising fragrance of apple and cinnamon as they bake.

Apple and cinnamon wholemeal muffins

Makes 12  

3/4 cup rolled oats

400ml skim milk

2 cups wholemeal plain flour

5 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed

1 egg

2 tablespoons honey

2 or 3 apples, cored and finely diced (skin on) - enough to make 1 and 1/2 to 2 cups

Combine oats and skim milk in a small bowl. Leave to soak for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Lightly grease a non-stick 12-hole muffin tin with butter or oil.

Meanwhile, sift flour, baking powder and cinnamon into a large bowl. Add brown sugar and stir well to combine. Make a well in the centre for the wet ingredients.

Add egg and honey to with the soaked oats mixture. Beat lightly with a fork to combine. Pour into the dry ingredients and, using a spatula, fold gently together until just incorporated (do not over mix or the batter will become tough). Gently fold in diced apple. Spoon mixture evenly into muffin tin.

Bake for approximately 25 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes before gently loosening muffins from the tin.

Fresh rice paper rolls with marinated tofu, vegetables and quinoa

These rolls were inspired by a dinner at Nourishing Quarter - a gem of a restaurant in Redfern where you can enjoy tasty, wholesome, vegetarian Vietnamese food and feel like you are in Nanna's sitting room. Nourishing Quarter marry clean, Vietnamese flavours with ancient grains, like quinoa and they cater very well for food intolerances. The recipe below can easily be made gluten-free by substituting the soy sauce with tamari.

Fresh rice paper rolls

 

Makes approximately 8 large rolls or 16 small rolls

1/2 cup quinoa

1 small carrot, peeled and grated

2-3 iceberg lettuce leaves, rolled and shredded

100g marinated tofu, finely cubed (I use 2 cakes of Japanese flavoured Soyco Tofu)

2-3 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped

2-3 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

2-3 tablespoons peanuts, toasted and crushed

2 spring onions, chopped

Vietnamese-style dressing (recipe follows)

rice paper sheets for fresh spring rolls

Place quinoa and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce heat to low, cover with tight-fitting lid and simmer for 15 minutes. Turn off heat and leave for a further 10 minutes. Remove lid and allow to cool for 5 or more minutes. Gently fluff up grains using a fork.

Meanwhile, prepare other filling ingredients as listed above. Gently toss together with the quinoa and dressing in a large bowl.

Fill a shallow, flat dish with hot water. Soak one rice paper sheet for a few seconds until soft and pliant. Carefully lay out on a clean, flat surface and place 4 tablespoons (for large rolls) or 2 tablespoons (for small rolls) of filling in the centre of the sheet. Fold the left and right sides of the rice paper over the filling, bring the bottom side up and over to make an envelope of sorts, then, keeping gentle pressure on the covered filling to ensure a firmly packed result, roll upwards to seal the spring roll. Repeat with remaining filling and rice paper sheets.

Serve rolls with a simple hoisin dipping sauce, made by diluting a small amount of hoisin sauce with an equal quantity of water and mixing with a smaller amount of sweet chilli sauce.

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Vietnamese-style dressing

1/8 cup light soy sauce (can substitute tamari for a gluten-free version - use less and adjust to taste)

1/8 cup lime juice

2 teaspoons caster sugar

1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1 small clove garlic, bruised

Combine all ingredients in a small jar and shake until caster sugar is dissolved. Taste for a balance of salty, sour and sweet flavours, adjusting quantities as required.

Gado gado

The warmer weather coaxes me out of the hot kitchen and draws my family outdoors to play. My version of this classic Indonesian salad is decidedly inauthentic, made more substantial by the addition of Japanese buckwheat noodles. This recipe is very flexible - think of what follows as merely a guide - and easily multiplied, making it a great dish to take to a picnic, barbecue or other gathering. The peanut sauce (based more or less on the Moosewood's Chinese peanut sauce recipe) is really a dressing, made of a mixture of readily available pantry ingredients. It thickens upon cooling; mixing in small amounts of hot water will help to restore it to drizzling consistency. 

Gado gado

SERVES 4

Peanut Dressing

1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/4 cup hot water

1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

a pinch of cayenne pepper

1 clove garlic, grated

1-2 tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped

In a small bowl, mix the peanut butter with the hot water until thoroughly combined [It is important to do this first!]. Mix in remaining ingredients and set aside.

The rest (blanched and fresh veggies, protein source(s) and noodles)

2 medium, red-skinned potatoes, cut into 2cm chunks
1 medium head of broccoli, cut into even florets

1 large carrot, peeled and cut into thick batons

1 small red capsicum, cored, seeded, sliced into thin pieces
1 spring onion, sliced into thin shards [leave a small amount aside for garnish]

4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and halved
135g (approx) Japanese soba noodles
100g fried tofu puffs, halved or quartered (depending on size)

Using a separate sauce pan for the eggs and potato, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Switch off the eggs and leave for 5 minutes. Boil potatoes until tender (about 10 minutes). Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables as indicated in the ingredients list and a large bowl of iced water. Once the eggs are done, remove from the water using a slotted spoon then plunge into iced water, drain and set aside. Once the potatoes are cooked, transfer from the water to a colander using the slotted spoon, then leave aside to steam dry.

If necessary, top up the water in the saucepans using boiled water from the kettle. To one, add the broccoli spears and carrots and to the other, the soba noodles. Leave all to simmer for about 4 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and halve (or quarter) the eggs.

Remove broccoli and carrot using the slotted spoon and plunge into the iced water, drain and set aside. Using a sieve, drain the noodles in the sink and then plunge into the iced water, drain and set aside.

To assemble, use separate plates or a large serving platter and alternate layers of potato, noodles, vegetables, tofu, drizzling them lightly with sauce as you go. Top with boiled eggs, remaining sauce and the remaining spring onion shards.

Darley Street Bistro

As a former denizen of the Inner West, the Botany View Hotel was a place I might go to for Hair of the Dog and local music on a Sunday afternoon. Now, thanks to a bit of a scrub-up and the excellent addition of Darley Street Bistro, this place has become somewhere to treat the kids and visiting relatives to an earlybird gourmet meal at a reasonable price. Unlike many other bistro menus, there is variety to be found in the vego options, so I can enjoy the rare luxury of agonising over my choice.

The first time I came here I had Pumpkin and goat's cheese ravioli tossed with roasted peppers, lemon and gremolata topped with grana padano ($20; pictured). This generous helping of home-made pasta was delicious and satisfying. More recently, I enjoyed the Haloumi stack with roasted capsicum, sweet potato, mushroom, green zucchini pesto, roasted tomato vinaigrette and wild baby rocket salad ($19)- a tasty, lighter meal, which I supplemented with pieces of a shared Vego pizza topped with cheese, roasted tomato sauce, chilli and lemon and rocket salad ($12 special; pictured). The latter is particularly good with a frosty glass of Bulmers Pear Cider or White Rabbit (both available on tap at the bar), as are the Hand made vegetarian spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce ($11 special). One day soon I will try the Vegetarian roasted beetroot salad with oranges, summer greens and roasted hazelnuts and extra virgin olive oil ($16). They also have a Veggie wrap special. For a tiny kitchen, Darley Street Bistro produces a dizzying array of plates that delights my (extended) vegetarian/omnivore family.

There is limited, communal seating downstairs so if you are bringing the little ones, make sure you have someone to help you upstairs with the pram. Bookings are recommended (they have high chairs).

Darley St Bistro is located at 597 King Street (corner of Darley Street) Newtown NSW 2042. To book, call 9517 1133.