Chorizo and Chick Pea Spaghettini

Another dinner on the run at this time of year (and especially for those of you who are all waiting on the return of Dinner Spinner to the store…there on Monday guys…buy up big)! Throw it in, and rush off to decorate, wrap, drop kids off to something, pick kids up from something, put your lippy on, heat up your curling iron, check the laundry has not taken over the laundry room, run the bath or whatever. Delicious dinner done in no time…please enjoy. (In the time that it took to make it, I blogged about it…yes, I’m thinking of you all!)

NEED:

5-6 cloves garlic

280g chorizo sausage, sliced

100g white wine

600g chicken stock

Few saffron threads

2 tbsp Umami Paste

1x 420g tin chick peas, drained

Handful baby spinach leaves

240-50g spaghettini (thin spaghetti) broken into short pieces, 7-8 cm long

Juice 1 lemon (at least 20g)

Toasted almond slivers and chopped parsley to garnish

DO:

Place garlic into Thermomix bowl and chop 2 sec/speed 6. 

Add chorizo and saute 8 min/Varoma/Reverse + speed soft.

Add wine, stock, saffron and umami and bring to the boil 8 min/100ºC/Reverse + speed 1.

Add pasta and cook for time recommended on package 100ºC/Reverse + speed 1.

Add spinach and chick peas and cook 2 min/100ºC/Reverse + speed 1. Taste liquid and adjust seasoning if necessary with a little sea salt, add lemon juice and stir through 2 sec/Reverse + speed soft.

Serve garnished with almonds and parsley.

Christmas Stollen

I cannot believe it; I have blinked and Christmas 2011 is here! Phew, what a year…can I just recap?

• Turned 50, but don’t tell anyone! I went to Phuket with the whole family (and that in itself is a story!)
• Went to Dubai and worked with George Calombaris, as my alter ego Candy Liscious the failed beauty queen.
• Thermomix in Australia launched the Asian cookbook, which I had been working on for a long time.
• Went to Melbourne and spent a couple of days with the amazing Dani Valent on the In the Mix shoot.
• Then went to Germany and Switzerland as part of the International Jury for a beautiful new Vorwerk Cookbook, out soon.
• Completed the recipes and photo shoot for the Thermomix in Australia 2012 Calendar available now.
• My number four child went to the States to study.
• I LEFT THERMOMIX in Australia! (Phew, thats a biggie, so deserved capitals!) July 4th, need I remind you, Independance Day, was my last day at head office and if you thought I was busy thus far, can I just mention…things then went into overdrive.
• Had a 3 part skype interview with Super Helene from SuperKitchen Machine, arguably the most prolific and up to date blogger on all things Thermomix. (Which interview served to press the fast forward button on a number of things! Seriously, if you want the thermomix world to know about something, just mention it to Helene, she probably knows it already, but she can spread the word faster than anyone.)
• Created a Dinner Spinner, a small book consisting of 21 recipes that you can create yourself in a Thermomix, which in one week, sold 700 copies …and many more to go yet!
• I also got all jiggy and wrote, and styled a cookbook called For Food’s Sake which has 160 pages, full colour pictures for every recipe (80 of those) and is so gorgeous, that I can scarcely stand the excitement. It will be available on here really soon, as well as in good bookstores and also online at Hub and Spoke or at my cooking classes!
• Speaking of which; I started running my own advanced cooking classes using Thermomix. These have been held in Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle, Perth and Mandurah to sell out crowds of amazing lovely people. It has been my pleasure to meet some fantastic people who are truly as passionate about the Thermomix and making great food as I am.
• Started importing a chocolate product called Crio Bru to Australia which is the most amazing healthy yummy product around and if I can put it into food or recipes, I will…but perhaps you know that already? I totally love it, and so do thousands of other happy customers. We will be in retail outlets just as soon as I can take a minute to help my very valuable marketing guru business partner more than I am at the moment!
• I opened two online shopping carts…(HUGE! When I say ‘I’, I mean the royal ‘we’…) Thanks honey!
• Have plans in place for another exciting project to be launched hopefully before December 25th…but you never know! Stay tuned…
• Started working for Kleenmaid in Australia, and am truly impressed by their new range of products which are about to get installed into my kitchen Monday. We have already had some successful sales as a result of my running classes in their amazing Sydney showroom, so thank you for that, and for believing that I would not get involved with anything that was less than excellent!
• I have been approached on an almost weekly basis by other appliance companies and I am still considering some offers…when the travel options to Italy and Germany are secured, so will be the deals! (hahaha)
• I have happily welcomed Heilala vanilla, Margaret River Chocolate Factory, Fini Olive Oil, Lighthouse Flour, and fantastic branding from Braincells to the Cooking with Tenina team.
• The other team Tenina members that I have to mention are Hub and Spoke publishing and Scott Print. I just love getting the phone calls from Hub and Spoke and mentioning casually in conversation, ‘just talking to my publisher’ or ‘please hold for a second, my publisher is calling’…you get the idea…still makes me smile/downright grin!
• And last but not least, the guy that got all this web stuff started for me, made me join Twitter when it was still something that only birds did, and now screens my calls because there is always something new I need him to add, remove, fix from any and all of my sites, the very patient, Luke Holder, nephew, son, dad, inspirational Tech guru!

Sorry to put you through all that, but hey, what a year no?

I am looking forward to a great 2012 but before we can get there, we have the little matter of Christmas to attend to…so to the job at hand.

I would like to introduce you to some of the better Christmas recipes I have on here…there are now quite a lot, but here are my picks! (Well for this year anyhoo!)

ONE:

Pistachio Marzipan Christmas Trees

A little sneaky one from this year. Pistachio Marzipan, which I have to say has 100’s of applications and may just start showing up in all sorts of recipes from here on in…If you do not like marzipan, do yourself a favour and give this a go…it is not like any marzipan you have ever tasted.

TWO:

Toblerone Dip

Toblerone Dip…The fruit at Christmas in Australia is fantastic, so joosh it up a bit with this one. Simple enough to whip up in no time, and impressive enough to make your guests come back for more.

THREE:

How about a little tradition? I make this every year and this year I have made it and tweaked it, so essentially, this is a new recipe! Aren’t you lucky? Stollen is buttery, almond and fruit laden with just a hint of in this case, pistachio marzipan…there I go again with that marzipan…its the new Umami…for Christmas this year. All the good recipe blogs are wearing it!

FOUR:

Sugar Roasted Plum Salad

Well its all about sugar plums…so this had to make the cut. For me the lead up to Christmas is about eating yummy light meals that will get me through in between the myriad of parties and eating festivities that dominate the calendar at this time of year, so Sugar Roasted Plum Salad is delish, light and a great mid week lunch or an accompaniment to something more substantial on the weekend.

FIVE: Make a date with these rolls and you won’t be disappointed in love!! I enjoy a little sweetness with savoury from time to time and for some reason at Christmas time, we do that a little more often. (Think glazed ham, cranberry sauce etc) So these Date rolls go extremely well with Christmas Dinner, or lunch, or just after with left over sliced ham, turkey or both.

SIX:  I make these every year, without a doubt. They make the cutest presents ever and of course I can but for a fleeting moment, imagine that I am in Italy…that far away place that I still have never been to…is there anyone out there willing to send me? I pledge to bring back more than just a big smile, recipes and knowledge to share. Siena Cake originates from, well, Siena and  is sticky, fruity, and far nicer than anything you can buy.

SEVEN:

White Chocolate Christmas

When it comes to gifting food, I am not short on ideas and I did a post last year about just this, so not strictly a recipe on its own, but a great post that just may get you thinking about how clever you could be with a little prod, some cellophane, curling ribbon and a Thermomix…Gourmet Gifts couldn’t be easier…go on, go see.

EIGHT: Whilst we’re on the whole giving gifts from the kitchen routine (and white chocolate as well), these Minty White Choc Truffles were an instant hit at our house and I must say, I have had a lot of great feedback about them as well. Easier than running to the shop and fighting the crowds…prettier and more personal.

White Chocolate Minty Truffles

NINE: You can’t go past a great cookie recipe at Christmas and this is a bit of a grown up version of a Choc Chip cookie. Developed way back in my original Kleenmaid days, these are even easier in the Thermomix.

TEN:  Time for a quick salad? Red and Green Salad will always look festive and is so easy, I can barely call it a recipe…it is more of a suggestion. Enjoy on a hot day pre Christmas, throw a steak (or a prawn) on the barbie and you’re away!

ELEVEN and TWELVE: I don’t think Christmas can be complete without a little gingerbread…am I right? So even though these just went up on here, you must agree, they deserve a mention in the twelve recipes of 2011…I am hoping at some point to contruct a gingerbread house out of this cookie recipe, but with the big day fast approaching, I am not confident it will be this year it shows up! The flavored sugar recipe is delish as a Christmas tweak to anything requiring a little sugar, so think whipped cream, coffee, Crio Bru, your partner….you get the idea.

So from me, to you; and from Cookingwithtenina on Facebook, I wish you all a Merry Christmas. May you all have the time to Celebrate and Bake, and to feel the spirit of the season and may you all look forward to a wonderful 2012. (Cue the Christmas carols here….)

 

Pistachio Marzipan Christmas Trees

Well there really is no need to keep mentioning it I fear…but if you like, bury your head in the sand and pretend it isn’t upon us again. Hopefully these may inspire you to get cracking and get your Christmas on! I love Christmas and I decorate like a mad woman, but this year I have a lounge full of brand, shiny, new, Kleenmaid appliances in boxes waiting for an install (scheduled) and so I am waiting to put the decorations up until that has happened….but in the meantime, my kitchen is taking on the role of Christmas prep quite nicely, and all, so that you amazing reader, can be organised your end! Now go and order a Dinner Spinner for all your Thermomix owning friends and family, attach a link to my site on a cute little card and you have Christmas REALLY sorted!

NEED:

250g sugar

130g blanched almonds

130g pistachios, shelled

½ tsp orange blossom water

½ tsp almond essence

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

20g cornflour

1 egg white

Granulated sugar crystals to roll

Small sugar stars or daisies as used in cake decorating

A large piping tip as a mold is useful

DO:

Place sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill 10 sec/speed 10.

Add almonds and pistachios and mill 20 sec/speed 7.

Add orange blossom water, almond essence, vanilla, cornflour and egg white and blend 40 sec/speed 5.

Refrigerate until marzipan is not oily and can be worked with easily, around 30 minutes.

Either push into the piping tip to make each ‘tree’ or form by hand. Roll in sugar. Use a little egg white to ‘glue’ the star to the top of the tree. Allow them to air dry. (NOTE: I did try to bake these and they collapsed. So I have concluded that raw is better! Certainly cuter!)

These will keep several weeks in an airtight container…in fact, what are you waiting for? Get cracking, Christmas is only a month away!

Almond Peach and Apricot Tart

You may have noticed…I have been putting up a lot of  recipes based on the Dried Apricot Preserves. Its just that I am down to two kids at home and I have so much of the stuff, I need it out of the fridge…to make room for new future creations. No one is complaining mind you and personally I cannot ever go past the combo of Apricot and Almonds, added peaches because I saw they looked so wonderful and were new season,  and as you know, I am pretty big on tarts! Putting them all together was always going to happen…but now who is going to eat it?  (I am not willing to adopt, but pick ups are acceptable. BYO takeaway containers?)

Mind you as a breakfast it isn’t all bad. There’s fruit, almonds, eggs…its practically an omelette!

NEED:

Pastry;

75g blanched almonds, toasted and cooled

40g sugar

230g  flour

Pinch sea salt

60g cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 large egg yolk

1 tsp Heilala vanilla extract

1/2 tp almond extract

15-25g ice cold water

Filling;

600g firm-ripe peaches, halved, pitted, and each half cut into three

1 tbsp Amaretto

60g + 2 tbsp sugar

110g Dried Apricot Preserves

1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk

30g  cream

1 tsp  almond extract

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

DO:

Place almonds and sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill 10 sec/speed 10.

Add remaining pastry ingredients and mix 10 sec/speed 7. Push dough together on floured Silpat mat and form a flat disc. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Prepare the fresh apricots by drizzling them with the Amaretto, and tossing them with the 60g of sugar.

Place remaining filling ingredients, including the 2tbsp sugar into Thermomix bowl and blend for 10 sec/speed 7.

Preheat oven to 180ºC and roll pastry out to line a 20-22 cm flan tin with removable base. Blind bake for 15 minutes, remove baking beads and cook a further 10 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 170ºC. Line the cut peaches skin side up in the baked pastry case. Top with filling. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until filling is set. Serve in wedges with cream and/or ice cream (of course!)

Apricot and Pistchio Marzipan Danish

It started as a way to use up the copious amount of Dried Apricot Preserves I had to make for a photo. And it has ended up as something I will need to go the gym to pay penance for, a LOT of RPM….ouch, I can feel the saddle imprint already. However…completely worth the pain of the classes to come…just for a mouthful of this. Seriously, if you are into Danish pastries at all, this is so easy and could be on my Christmas breakfast table this year I think.

What do you think? Bake and Celebrate??

NEED:

2 sheets commercial puff pastry, thawed

1/2 batch Dried Apricot Preserves

250g sugar

130g blanched almonds

130g pistachios, shelled

1/2 tsp almond essence

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

1 egg white

DO:

Make jam if you have not already done so. It must be cold.

Place sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill 10 sec/speed 10.

Add almonds and pistachios and mill 20 sec/speed 7.

Add orange blossom water, almond essence, vanilla, cornflour and egg white and blend 40 sec/speed 5.

Tip mixture out onto piece of baking paper, dusted with cornflour, wrap and cool in fridge. You must not put the warm ‘marzipan’ onto the pastry.

Preheat oven to 220°C and line a baking tray with paper.

Arrange pastry on prepared tray and spread the centre of both with jam. (Be generous now!)

Roll a piece of the marzipan and place down the centre of the pastry. Cut slashes into each side of the pastry sheet on the diagonal. Fold these over on top of the filling and tuck in the ends. It should look like a lattice of sorts.

Brush with egg wash and cook for 15-17 minutes or until golden and smelling yummy!

Slice and eat, but please wait until the jam has cooled a little…it is hotter than the sun! (I know this, and have the blister to prove it!)

Enjoy!

Oh Yes, Orange Heaven Cheesecake...

We are not big on Halloween in Australia, and I personally don’t get into ‘spooky’ food, but I have always been big on Pumpkin Pie…something that pretty well fills my kids with suitable Halloween style horror. Vegetables? In dessert? But trust me, they’ll never know…just call it Halloween Cloud Pie, or Orange Heaven Cheesecake. Personally…I am good with pumpkin in most things. So..er…Happy Halloween, in the best way possible.

NEED:

Crust;

130g butter

Finely grated zest 1 lemon

50g dark brown sugar

1 tsp Heilala vanilla extract

1tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

160g plain flour

1 pinch sea salt

75g each pecans and almonds

Filling;

340g roasted pumpkin (The weight refers to apres roasted weight)

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground allspice

(If you don’t have all of these handy but you do have commercially pkged ‘Mixed spice’ use equivalent amounts of that)

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

140g vanilla sugar (see below)

500g cream cheese

3 eggs

Whipped cream to serve

DO:

Crust;

Preheat oven to 180ºC on a fan forced setting.

Place butter, zest and sugar into Thermomix bowl and melt for 3-4 min/37ºC/speed 2.

Add remaining crust ingredients and blend for 15 sec/speed 6.

Press into springform cake tin with paper lined base. Reserve about 1 cup of the crust for the topping.

Bake for 18 minutes or until golden and fragrant. Cool.

Filling;

Place all ingredients into Thermomix bowl and blend 20 sec/speed 7. Scrape down if necessary and pour into base. Top with crumble mixture and steam in steam oven for 1 hour….OR, if you are being a Thermomixer of extraordinary talent, place 1L water into Thermomix bowl, place cheesecake on top of a pair of chopsticks (for easier steam circulation) and steam for 60 min/Varoma/speed 3.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C on a fan forced setting. Place steamed cheesecake into oven for 20 minutes until golden and a little crispy on top.

Cool completely. Serve with dollops of whipped cream or mounds of the best vanilla bean ice cream available to you, which of course if you live in WA would be Azzura Gelati’s award winning version and available at your local IGA store.

Now if that amount of delcious calories doesn’t spook you…what will?

Vanilla Sugar

Roast a vanilla bean until crispy, about 10-15 minutes in 200ºC oven and then place in Thermomix bowl with 140g good quality sugar of choice. Mill 10 sec/speed 10. Store in airtight jar until use.

Chicken Biryani with Pistachios

From my understanding, Biryani is a recipe that takes all day, (and then some) if done in the traditional manner! It is also a dish cooked with the bone in the meat, which naturally adds flavor as well as nutrition, the variety of spices used is wide and every region/family has its own version! I believe that cooking all day with love for the dish, the flavours and the potential diners is wonderful and there are occasions when I do that, but not tonight! At the risk of offending the true Biryani aficionados, and throwing caution to the winds and WAAAY too busy to spend a whole day on one recipe, armed with a trusty Thermomix…(what else??) this is my version. And damn delicious it is too…if I say so ‘may-self’! You can use brown/red/white or black rice if you wish or a combo and if you are really going out on a limb, how about replacing the rice with quinoa….there are no bones, no layers of rice and chicken, it is simple in the extreme. So perhaps I should call it something else? Suggestions willingly accepted.

NEED:

1/2 cinnamon stick

2 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tbsp dried chili flakes (or to taste)

1 tsp sea salt

6 cloves garlic

2 eschalots

1 brown onion (80g)

20g piece peeled ginger

20g EVOO

1200g chicken thigh fillet, cut in large pieces

400g liquid chicken stock

400g water

200g rice of choice

50g dried currants

2 bay leaves,

2 tsp cardamom seeds

Pinch saffron threads

50g butter or ghee

Pistachios, almonds or other nuts of choice, toasted

DO:

Place cinnamon, coriander, chili flakes and salt into Thermomix bowl and mill 5 sec/speed 10.

Add garlic, eschalots, onion, ginger and EVOO and chop for 2 sec/speed 6. Saute 8 min/Varoma/speed 2.

Add chicken and stock and cook 6 min/100ºC/Reverse + speed soft.

Preheat oven to fan forced 200ºC.

Pour chicken mixture into large oven proof dish and stir through water, rice, currants, bay leaves, cardamom seeds and saffron threads. Cover and bake for 1 hour.

Check liquid and add more water if needed. (Rice will absorb more or less water depending on variety used.)

Taste and adjust seasoning if required. Stir through butter or ghee.

Serve with nuts and sliced chili’s and garnish with fresh bay leaves. A dollop of natural yogurt is also nice.

Rawvolutionary Crio Smoothie!

Phew what a week that was. You may have noticed things have gone a little quiet on here, and with good reason! I have been manically getting my book pics done with the irrepressible and amazing photographer Shea Walsh at the lens!  And guess what we have all been guzzling to help us get through very long days with focus and clarity? You may have guessed it…yes…keep reading dear reader!

I have made no secret of my new passion, and now I have to get it out of the brownies and into something quick and healthy. Can we just have a quick look at what a superfood Crio Bru really is? As it is made from 100% cacao we are looking at the following health properties;

• Rich in antioxidants (more than in blueberries) and zinc
• Low in calories and carbs
• Contains the natural stimulant Theobromine in low levels, which increases alertness and energy without any of the come down effects normally associated with caffeine
• Curbs appetite
• More magnesium than any other food; which supports the heart, aids digestion, balances brain chemistry and builds strong bones.
• Gluten free, soy free, dairy free, sugar free, low levels of good fats
• An endorphin or “bliss chemical” called anadamide is produced by our body after exercise that makes us feel great. It has also been found in one plant – cacao.

So a little info to swallow along with this great tasting smoothie…not officially raw as the Crio Bru granules have been roasted, but a much preferable way to eat a version of cacao that has had the least amount of processes done to it…compare powdered cacao, to the rough natural texture of the Crio and ask yourself how did the powder get that way? It was not through straight ‘milling’, believe me!

Now the controversial stuff is out of the way (who ever knew Chocolate could harbour controversy!!) lets just get to the taste, which is after all why we drink or eat anything, at least in my house! I have been known to get a spoonful of Crio Bru granules, and mix it with a little Bannister Downs double cream, and eat straight off the spoon….so there goes all that healthy low fat theory out the window…but then, I do squeeze 48 hours into every 24…so something is working! (Right?)

NEED:

4-6 dates, pitted

60g Crio Bru granules

Handful raw almonds (soaked overnight, drained)

1/2 avocado

1 banana

100g ice cubes

400g water

30g real Maple Syrup or Agave Syrup or honey

pinch sea salt

DO:

Place dates, Crio Bru granules and almonds into Thermomix bowl and blend 10 sec/speed 10.

Add remaining ingredients and blend 1 min/speed 8.

Drink! (And then probably make another lot!)

True Energy Bars

I know you have heard me raving (and raving) all about Crio Bru lately…(if not, you must not be following me too closely!) and now I am using it so much in my recipes that it has become a staple in my pantry! I am amazed at what happens to my appetite when I eat it…so of course, rather than miss out on all those yummies, I have got to use my recipe powers for good…and this is good, believe me! I am noticing when I drink CrioBru I have a ‘feel good euphoria’, which nothing can bring down…and there has been a lot going on in my glass half full world, that should possibly be seen as glass half empty, just not when I am on my Crio!  (and I am drinking chocolate antioxidants…does it get any better than this??)

SO…if you are the uninitiated…head on over to the website and have a read and make sure you go and say hi to them on Facebook as well.

In the meantime, try making these babies for a quick pick-me-up, on-the-go, running-out-the-door breakfast bar, that will keep you going way past lunchtime…(if you have the Crio). No Crio? Use coffee grinds…well, maybe instant coffee granules…

NEED:

300g blanched almonds, toasted

80g linseed

Zest 1 orange

½ cinnamon stick

35g coconut, shredded

Pinch sea salt

3tbsp honey

2tbsp Maca powder

3 tbsp coconut oil

50g Crio grounds

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

Ganache topping if desired

Ganache;

150g brewed Crio liquid, hot

250g Belgian dark chocolate pieces

DO:

Place ½ the almonds, linseed, orange zest and cinnamon stick into TM bowl and mill 10 sec/speed 8.

Add remaining ingredients except reserved almonds and blend 20 sec/speed 8.

Add almonds and blend 4 sec/speed 5.

Press into lined rectangular baking tin and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the ganache by placing Crio & chocolate into clean TM bowl. Melt 1 min/speed 2. Pour on top of bars and set completely in fridge. Cut into bar shapes and store separately in bags in freezer or fridge until use.

Crio Power Balls

Look, I am busy right? Needed chocolate, needed healthy energy and just happened to have some extra Crio Brü lying around (wink)…please get this stuff in your pantry as soon as you can. You won’t be sorry. As for calling this a recipe…bit embarrassing to do so really, so don’t judge me…just make them (then thank me)!

NEED:

100g dried cherries

100g currants

100g almonds, toasted

100g Crio Brü granules

30g maple syrup

Desiccated coconut for rolling as needed

DO:

Throw it all in, go on…all of it except the coconut. Blend 10 sec/speed 8.

With damp hands, roll into tablespoon size balls and roll in coconut.

NOW; don’t eat them straight away as the flavours will improve with time. The Crio Bru will provide you with more antioxidants than pomegranate juice, more energy than one of those so named, ‘energy drinks’, (with no bad side effects), and more feel good karma than a week on an ashram, so make sure you don’t over dose…unless you really need that one power ball to get you out of here!