Tandoori Chicken

GUYS…the Dinner Spinner iPhone, slash iPad App is OUT…its available now…really! SO exciting to get an email on Saturday from our developer with the news that Apple Inc had got their skates on and the app is out! So go check it out; reduced introductory price for the first 30 days, so buckle up and pay the price of a coffee and a cake and have the convenience of your Dinner Dilemma solved where ever you are!

*25 delicious, easy to make dinners

* All using a Thermomix

* 4 brand new, never previously released recipes

* Versatile to suit all tastes

* Includes 8 tasty vegetarian dishes

Solve your Daily Dinner Dilemma now!

Just to peak your interest, here is one of the more popular recipes from Dinner Spinner, yes that would be the BOOK and the APP…hope you enjoy. (OH, and of course, Merry Christmas from me!)

NEED:

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp black peppercorns

3 tbsp paprika

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp turmeric

2 cloves garlic

2 red chilies, deseeded

100g onion

2 tbsp EVOO

15g ginger, peeled

30g lime juice, fresh

70g tomato paste

80g Greek yoghurt

Sea salt to taste

4-6 chicken Maryland (thigh and breast attached, skin on, on the bone)

DO:

Place cumin, coriander, peppercorns, paprika, cayenne & turmeric into Thermomix bowl & dry roast 10 min/Varoma/speed 2.

Cool slightly before milling 1 min/speed 10.

Add all remaining ingredients except chicken and blend 10 sec/speed 4. Scrape down and repeat.

Place chicken into large baking dish & slash the skin in large diagonal strips. Rub tandoori mixture into skin & cover chicken for several hours to marinate.

Heat grill to minimum 200°C (or hotter if available). Grill chicken for around 20-30 minutes until well cooked.

 SERVE:

With steamed rice, Naan bread or oven fries & a garden salad.

Gingerbread; hearts in this instance!

Ever the perfect cookie at this time of year, they can be quite problematic..so here we have a simpler version, more like a shortbread I suppose or a pfeffernusse of sorts, or even a cross between the two. I think these are a little easier to roll and cut than most gingerbread as the dough is more workable because of the absence of molasses or treacle. And I  might say, a little grown up with a bite of pepper every now and again. Enjoy…and can I say it yet? Merry Christmas Baking…

NEED:

210g unsalted butter

1 batch Sugar and Spice

Pinch sea salt

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

380-400g plain flour

1 tsp lemon extract or oil

DO:

Place butter, sugar and spice, salt and vanilla into Thermomix bowl and blend 10 sec/speed 5.

Add remaining ingredients and blend 10 sec/speed 6. Scrape down sides of bowl and tip out onto well-floured silicon mat. It will be fairly unmixed and crumbly. Knead together by hand into a flat disc. Place into fridge for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 180ºC and line 2 baking trays with paper.

Roll dough out to ½ cm thickness and cut using cookie cutters of choice.

Bake 10 minutes until fragrant and golden.

Allow to cool on trays.

Brush with glaze while still warm. Decorate with piped icing, or  other decorations of choice.

Glaze

 NEED:

40g caster sugar

30g water

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

1 tsp gelatin powder

DO:

Place all ingredients into Thermomix bowl making sure that they do not get dumped onto the top of the blades.

Cook for 4 min/70ºC/speed 1. Cool slightly.

Brush onto cookies. Do not touch the glaze once brushed onto the cookies as it will mark very easily.

Sugar and Spice and all things nice….in a gingerbread cookie!

Sugar and Spice and all things nice….

Just a little quickie…a gift idea, or simply something to add to your pantry. Totally wonderful in Crio Bru as a sweetener. Actually part of the Gingerbread recipe coming your way soon. (SO go on, make it and get ready for that!) Bag it in small cellophane bags and tie the gingerbread recipe on…another Christmas dilemma sorted!

Then think laterally, add dried mango to coconut and glazed pineapple, and mill with palm sugar for a tropical twist…gotta do that one myself yet. But sounds amazing don’t you think? Or what about lime zest with pistachios and a little pandan for a bright green sugar for well…whatever you need a bright green sugar for! The possibilities are endlessssss

 NEED:

Zest 1 orange

Few coloured peppercorns

½ tonka bean (optional)

½ whole fresh nutmeg

½ vanilla bean

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cardamom seeds

15g candied ginger

½ cinnamon stick

150g dark muscovado unrefined cane sugar

DO:

Place all ingredients except sugar into Thermomix bowl and mill 5 sec/speed 9.

Add sugar and blend 10 sec/speed 10.

Package in cellophane bags and tie with ribbon as a gift. Attach a copy of a recipe to use it in or use in recipe as needed.

Chicken Mango and Noodle Salad

Perth has been having a mini heatwave…of sorts, and now it is all cloudy and threatening, but I do have the airconditioner in full swing. The first air conditioning day for the season in fact…here we go…summer is on its way!

So for a hot day, a quick and easy salad. Make the dressing. Chop the cabbage, fire up the barbie or the grill and dinner dilemma is solved…to everyones satisfaction I think.

Speaking of Dinner Dilemma’s being solved…VERY SOON…in my store (see tab above), I will have my first little self published project available for sale. Now let me just make a fuss…21 fabulous recipes, all main meals with lots of variety, whether you are carnivore or vegetarian, whether you enjoy Asian or Mexican food, spicy, salads, winter warmers, its a bit of a mixer and hopefully you will find that you have a new friend in the kitchen in this book. It is small enough to carry in your bag;  just call it a prehistoric app…bring it out at the shop to just check on a recipe ingredients and yes, dinner is sorted. It will be that easy…so hope to have a big SOLD OUT sign up really soon!

In the meantime, enjoy this…

NEED:
Dressing;

20g peeled ginger root

1 lemon grass stalk, white part only

1 kaffir lime leaf

1 red chili

2 cloves garlic

30g palm sugar

Pinch sea salt

40g fish sauce

100g lemon or lime juice, fresh

60-80g Fini EVOO

Handful fresh mint leaves

Salad;

One chicken breast fillet between 2 servings

1/2 Chinese cabbage

Few spinach leaves or other salad greens of choice

1-2 avocadoes

1-2 mangoes

1-2 pkts Changs fried noodles

DO:

Place all dressing ingredients into Thermomix bowl and blend 10 sec/speed 7. Remove from bowl and set aside.

Place up to 400g of cabbage at a time into the Thermomix bowl and chop 4 sec/speed 4. Remove from bowl and place on serving platter. Repeat with remaining cabbage until all is chopped. Place a few baby spinach leaves or other greens on top.

Meanwhile heat a griddle pan over a high heat on Induction 12. Oil it and then cook each chicken breast, until well charred and marked. Turn heat down to medium heat, (Induction 6), cover and cook until cooked through completely. Rest chicken,  covered in pan with heat turned off.

Chop avocado and mango and toss through the dressing.

Slice chicken on the diagonal and arrange over bed of greens, top with avocado, mango and drizzle with dressing. Garnish with noodles and additional sliced red chilies.

Voila, Summer is Served!

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.

Ginger nut biscuits…and milk!

Those tooth achingly hard childhood biscuits are finally here for the making! This is the second play around I have had with these and I have tried to glam them up a bit with some lemon oil and vanilla, but the bottom line is, they are delicious on their own, as a biscuit base for a cheese cake or roughly chopped and stirred through Cinnamon Dulce de Leche and a bucket of whipped cream, allowed to soften, (and as you will note, there is no picture of this creamy delight)…it was ugly as sin, but so divine! (DIVINE…all capitals is what it deserves!)

NEED:

250g unsalted butter, cubed

250g dark brown sugar

250g golden syrup

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp finely ground black pepper

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp Heilala vanilla bean paste

1/2 tsp Lemon oil

400g SR flour

1 tsp baking powder

DO:

Preheat oven to fan forced 160ºC and line 3-4 cookie trays with paper.

Place butter, sugar, golden syrup and spices into Thermomix bowl and cook for 7 min/100ºC/speed 3.

Add remaining ingredients and blend for 40 sec/speed 8.

Spread out onto Silpat mat to cool down quickly.

Make small balls, about the size of a walnut and place evenly on prepared trays. Using a piece of baking paper and your MC, press each cookie with the MC to flatten into a nice round shape. (Use the baking paper to prevent sticking the dough to the MC.)

Bake for 20 minutes or until dark brown and well cooked. Leave in turned off oven to harden…if you want to crack a tooth…the longer the better!

Malabar Fish Curry

Can you have too much fish curry? Already posted one earlier in the week to help Mrs Azzura Gelati, with her dailydinnerdilemma…am now thinking that will be a feature on my app…How do you all feel about that? Apparently she loved it, (and I quote; “ and the true test was I actually followed the recipe. I never do that. You are way better than those arsey #masterchef contestants!’) and so hoping we get the same repsonse here kids…enjoy!

NEED:

Coconut Relish;
1 large green chilli
3-4 coriander roots and stalks
35g peeled ginger
Juice 1 lemon
200g frozen young coconut (Asian stores)
Curry;
4-5 large cloves garlic
1 red chilli de-seeded
1 small piece palm sugar
1 tsp turmeric powder
½ tsp cinnamon
700g white fish fillets cubed in large pieces
250g prawns , peeled
25g peeled ginger
1 large green chilli, de-seeded
1 large brown onion, peeled and quartered
20g oil
400g tin coconut milk
120g water
1 tbsp TM stock concentrate
Juice 1 lime
Fresh coriander leaves, sliced red chillies and lime wedges to serve

DO:

Make coconut relish by placing chilli, coriander and ginger into Thermomix bowl and mincing for 3-4 sec/speed 7. Scrape down sides of bowl and add juice and chunks of coconut, slightly thawed. Mill for 7 sec/speed 8.
Set aside.

Place garlic, red chilli, palm sugar, turmeric and cinnamon into Thermomix bowl and mince for 3-4 sec/speed 7.

Place cubed fish and prawns into ThermoServer and scrape marinade over. Rub into the fish and prawns and leave for at least 1 hour.

Without cleaning bowl, place ginger and green chilli into Thermomix bowl and mince for 3-4 sec/speed 7. Add onion and oil and chop for 3 sec/speed 4.
Sauté for 5 min/Varoma/Reverse + speed soft  with MC off.

Add coconut milk, water, stock and juice and cook for 15 min/100ºC/Reverse + speed soft.

Add fish and prawns and any residual marinade and cook for 2-3 min/100ºC/Reverse + speed soft.

Pour into ThermoServer to rest before serving with steamed rice, coconut relish, coriander, red chillies and lime wedges.

Golden Fish Curry and Rice

OK, so we’re supposed to eat more fish, and I have to admit, I don’t eat anywhere near enough, I am way too busy testing recipes that normally don’t have fish as the starring ingredient…but this is one of my older recipes that appeared in last year’s Thermomix calendar. It is fragrant and quick, and definitely a great way to include fish in your weekly menu. I have another one of these fragrant curries up my sleeve as well…so stay tuned if you like this one….more to come.

NEED:

3 cm peeled ginger
Few kaffir lime leaves
1-2 red chilli es, de-seeded or to taste
3 cloves garlic
20 g dried prawns
1 tbsp ground turmeric
2 tsp tamarind purée
1 tbsp oil
20 g palm sugar
500-550 g coconut cream
1 kg white fish fillets cubed
1 tbsp fish sauce
Juice 1 lime
Few sprigs coriander to garnish

DO:

Place ginger, lime leaves, chillies, garlic, prawns, turmeric, tamarind purée, oil and palm sugar into Thermomix bowl and chop for 4 sec/speed 6-7. Scrape down sides of bowl and sauté for 4 min/Varoma/speed 1.

Add coconut cream and cook for 8 min/100°C/speed 1. (It is OK if the oil separates.) Add fish, fish sauce and lime juice and cook for 9 min/100°C/Reverse + speed soft.

Garnish with coriander and additional lime wedges, serve with steamed rice….and feel your heart breathe a sigh of relief….

Tom Yum with Prawns

I have wanted to do this for ages. I absolutely love Tom Yum and always made it with a bought paste, until now! A bit of investigation, a little tweaking, and here we have it. The paste is a recipe in its own right and of course will keep for ages in an airtight jar in the fridge and can be used for anything that Tom Yum paste can be used for. So I give you not one, but two recipes…you gotta ‘LIKE’ that kids?

Paste;

NEED:

2 stalks lemon grass, white part only

3 kafir lime leaves

30g galangal

25g Nam Prik Plao (Roasted chilli paste)

2-4 Thai birds eye chillies (I used 2, with seeds)

75g eschalots (about 1 large)

10g gula melacca (melaka? rock pam sugar? jaggery?)

25g fine shrimp paste

20g fish sauce

35g peanut oil

Good handful coriander, roots, stalks, leaves

Juice and zest 1 lime

DO:

Place all ingredients into mixing bowl and blend 30 sec/speed 5 then increase speed and blend a further 1 min/speed 6.

Scrape down sides of bowl and lid and cook 15 min/Varoma/speed 2 with the MC on an angle to allow reduction.

Soup;

NEED:

3-4 cloves garlic

30g ginger

1L water

400g tomatoes chopped

1 birds eye chilli

200g mixed mushrooms

100g baby corn

1kg prawns in shell

DO:

Place all ingredients, except mushrooms, corn and prawns into mixing bowl with cooled paste.

Place prawns into Varoma dish and set into positon.

Cook 15 min/Varoma/speed 2.

Add corn, mushrooms and cook a further 15 min/Varoma/speed 2.

When soup is cooked serve with the following accompaniments;

Shredded Chinese cabbage

Diced tomatoes

Sliced spring onions/shallots

Diced red caspicum

Lots of fresh coriander leaves

Lime wedges

You can pretty much add any other chopped veggies that make it for you! Or add chicken, or pork…I think this might make me a Tom Yummy Mummy!

Thai Flavors Chilli Jam

I have a little chilli bush and honestly, at this time of the year, I can barely keep up and still they ripen like little candle flames on the bush. They do look so appealing (especially if you have just returned from Phuket and a week of crazy hot food)!

So a little Thai flavored chilli jam, to honor the Phuket trip (and unfortunately only uses 8 little chillies!) Not sure how to use the other thousand that are ripening as we speak! What are your favorite recipes using lots of chillies?

NEED:

8-10 cloves garlic

100g fresh ginger

100g fresh galangal

8 small chillies (or 4 long)

2-3 kaffir lime leaves

zest and juice 4 limes

100g water

220g Gula melaka sugar in chunks

60g fish sauce

90g rice wine vinegar

20g soy or tamari sauce

DO:

Place garlic, ginger, galangal, chillies and lime leaves into Thermomix bowl and mince together to form a paste. This may take a couple of turns on speed 7-8 with a scrape down in between.

Add remaining ingredients and blend for 1 minute on speed 7.

Tip all into a saucepan and cook on Induction 5 until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to Induction 6-7 to bring to a steady simmer. You will need to reduce the jam until it changes colour and becomes sticky.

Meanwhile, sterlise a glass jar and keep it hot.

Decant cooked jam into hot jar, seal and allow to cool.

Check seal by trying (not too hard) to open the jar. If it is difficult to open the jar, it is sealed and will keep in the pantry indefinitely. If the seal breaks easily, keep refrigerated until use. Serve with any meats, to add  heat to a salad dressing, as a side with Thai food…or straight out of the jar if you need a chilli hit!