Melody's Pizza House

I'm a bit of a fan of good homemade pizzas, especially ones made from scratch. When the choice of Pizza places are around here are limited and sometimes a bit dodgy (I'm not a fan of Turkey bacon, nor Beef bacon!) it is best to make your own.

I have numerous recipes for pizza bases and I've made about a dozen different types - ones using the bread maker, ones by hand, ones using the mix master (with dough hook). But time and time again I come back to this recipe by Australian chef, Karen Martini. It is tasty, simple and it hasn't failed me. Yet. It also makes the right amount of dough for like 3 big pizzas.

My last batch of pizzas yielded about 4 medium pizzas (MrL and I could only eat 3 of them) and 2 small pizzas (for the girls - Monet likes to decorate those ones). Sometimes I use my pizza trays (if wanting 3 big pizzas), other times I free form and place on semolina laced alfoil - works a treat and doesn't stick.

Here's a photo of the ones we gobbled up the other night, before a light layering of '4 Italian Cheeses' were added.

Top L-R; Tapanade Pizza, Tandoori Lamb
Bottom L-R; Roasted Vegetable Pizza, Salami and Anchovy Pizza

Look nice eh?

I can tell you that these pizzas were honestly the best ones I have ever made and I've been making them for a few years now.

My trick is to make the dough early - like a good 8-10 hours before you are actually going to eat them. The dough rises nicely over quite a few hours to make the base more higher and fluffier than if you just leave it for an hour (where it will still be quite tasty, but a thinner base.) I also roll out the dough about 90 minutes before I'm going to decorate - this way they rise some more but easily pat down with your fingertips. And thirdly, keep your toppings simple and put a few splashes of olive oil over your toppings before adding a light layering of cheese.

*nom nom*

Baked Corned Beef

This recipe is GOLD.  Very, very tasty and absolutely delicious when served with the potatoes recommended.  (I didn't use kipfler ones though - they were unavailable at the time.)  I also served this with cooked cabbage which really set the meal off.  The meat was really, really tender and the sauce from the potatoes mixed extremely well with the meat.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Cooking at Home', page 162, published 2008*

Ingredients

1.5 kg piece corned beef

2 bay leaves

2 tbs black peppercorns

2 carrots, sliced

3 celery sticks, sliced

2 leeks, trimmed and sliced

1/4 bunch flat-leaf parsley

1 whole bulb garlic, unpeeled, cut in half length ways and cloves separated

4 sprigs thyme

For the Mustard Kipflers

8 large kipfler potatoes, sliced

1 red onion, sliced

200ml pouring cream

4 tbs Dijon mustard

3 tbs seeded mustard

sea salt and freshly grounded black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C.  Place the beef in a large ovenproof dish and cover with cold water.  Bring to the boil over high heat, then remove the beef and drain the liquid.  Return the beef to the dish, add the bay leaves, peppercorns, carrots, celery, leeks, parsley, garlic and thyme and cover with boiling water.  Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cover and cook in the oven for 2 1/2 hours or until tender.

Meanwhile, to make the mustard kipflers, boil the potatoes in lightly salted water for about 15-20 minutes or until tender.  Drain and place in a large bowl.  Add the onions, cream and mustards, then season.

Remove the beef from the dish ans discard the other flavourings.  Cut the beef into slices and serve with the mustard kipfler potatoes.

Serves 6

Roasted Vegetable and Gruyere Pasties

I couldn't find celeriac anywhere so I used some sweet potato instead. I also couldn't find Gruyere cheese (! I know!!) so I used some good old tasty. No jap pumpkin here either, so I used Kent (which I prefer anyway!) I don't own a food processor, so I used my mix master on extra low speed, using dough hooks, to mix the pastry together. But after all that, it was pretty simple really.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
Pastry
3 1/3 cups (500g) plain flour
1/2 tsp table salt
3 tbs olive oil
1 cup (250mls) cold water

Filling
3x2 cm slices jap pumpkin, cut into 1 cm pieces
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1 cm pieces
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 cm pieces
3 parsnips, peeled and cut into 1 cm pieces
1/2 celeriac, peeled and cut into 1 cm pieces
70ml extra virgin olive oil
salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
5 golden shallots, peeled and sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 leeks, trimmed and finely sliced
1 tsp ground fennel
5 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, chopped
150g grated Gruyere
1 egg, lightly beaten
100g ricotta
1 extra egg, beaten with 1 tbs olive oil
sesame seeds (optional)

Method
Preheat oven to 165C. For the pastry, combine flour and salt in a food processor and, with motor running, drizzle in olive oil. Add water and pulse until mixture just comes together. Knead gently on a lightly floured work surface, then wrap in plastic film and place in the fridge for 2 hours.

To make the filling, combine the pumpkin, carrot, potato, parsnip and celeriac, in a large baking dish. Add 50 mls of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast vegetables for 1 hour, turning occasionally. Turn off oven and leave vegetables inside for 1 hour (they should shrink and intensify in flavour).

Heat remaining olive oil in a large saucepan over low-heat. Add shallots, garlic and leek and cook for 8-10 minutes or until soft and caramelised. Stir in ground fennel and parsley. Add roasted vegetables and stir gently to combine. Stir in Gruyere and beaten egg. Adjust seasoning if necessary.

Preheat oven to 200C. Divide pastry into 4 pieces, making 2 slightly larger than the others. Roll the 2 larger pieces on a lightly floured surface to 5 mm-thick ovals. Spread vegetable mixture evenly on each, leaving a 2 cm border. Scatter ricotta over vegetables. Roll remaining pastry into 2 thin ovals and cover vegetables. Press and twist edges of pastry to seal and glaze tops by brushing with beaten egg. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using, and salt and pepper. Place pasties on a large baking tray lined with baking powder. Bake for 25-30 mins or until cooked and golden. Remove from oven and leave for 10 minutes before serving. Makes 2 large pasties.

Serves 6-8 as a light lunch

Tuna Fritters with Whipped Fetta

These would have to be the tastiest tuna fritters I have ever tasted. Repeat. Ever tasted. They were delicious and if Lyndon liked them, well, that is really saying something. I think it is the combination of Tabasco sauce and lemon zest which really 'lift' them. Very simple to make with cheap ingredients. Try them.

Since I don't own a food processor, I used my Bamix with the 'mincer' attachment. I also find it better to place the uncooked fritters in the fridge to 'set' for at least 20 minutes before frying.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

100 g fetta

100 g ricotta

50 ml pouring cream

185 g canned tuna in springwater, drained

2 tsp lemon zest

2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, chopped

3 splashes Tabasco sauce

2 eggs

250 g potatoes, cooked and mashed

3 spring onions, sliced

3 cups (210 g) fresh breadcrumbs

1/2 cup (75 g) plain flour

olive oil, for frying

lemon wedges, to serve

watercress sprigs, to serve (optional)

Method

To make the whipped fetta, place fetta, ricotta and cream in a food processor with 3-4 tbs water and blend until smooth and light.

To make the fritters, place the tuna in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add lemon zest, parsley, Tabasco sauce and 1 egg and process. Add potatoes and process until combined. Transfer to a large bowl and mix in spring onions and 3 tbs of the breadcrumbs. Use your hands to shape mixture into small fritters about 6cm in diameter.

Beat remaining egg. Dip fritters in flour to coat. Dip into beaten egg, then in remaining breadcrumbs. Heat olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan and fry fritters for 2 minutes on each side or until cooked, then drain on kitchen paper. Serve with whipped fetta, lemon wedges and watercress if desired.

Eggplant Parmigiana

This was actually pretty tasty and was something different too. The anchovies in the recipe really brought out the flavour. It was more like an eggplant lasagna rather than a parmigiana! I added on top a few sliced black olives and a sprinkling of crumber fetta cheese....

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
2 large eggplants (I used 1)
3/4 cup (110g) plain flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten with 3 tbs water
2 cups fine breadcrumbs
350ml olive oil, for frying
100ml extra virgin olive oil
4 cups (1 litre) tomato passata (I used 500ml)
1 cup (80g) grated Parmesan
200g mascarpone
4 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
10 slices fontina* cheese
4 sprigs oregano (I used dried)
2 sprigs basil, leaves picked
salt flakes and freshly ground pepper

Method
Cut eggplants length ways into 1/2 cm-thick slices. Dust eggplant with flour, then dip into egg was then breadcrumbs. Heat olive oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Fry eggplant slices for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

Preheat the oven to 170C. Place 2 tbs of the extra virgin olive oil in a large ovenproof dish and swirl to cover base. Spread about a third of the tomato passata in base of dish. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons Parmesan. Place marscarpone, anchovies and remaining Parmesan in a small bowl and stir to combine.

Place one layer of eggplant slices over the base of the dish. Spoon another third of the tomato passata over eggplant, top with a layer of fontina and spoon over a few dollops of mascarpone mixture. Sprinkle with half the oregano and basil. Repeat layers, seasoning each layer. Finish with cheese and herbs. Drizzle with remaining extra virgin olive oil and cover with foil/

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden.

Serves 6

*Fontina is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese with a sweet delicate flavour. (I looked high and low for this cheese and was unsuccessful in finding it. Instead I used what I had in the fridge - some lovely cheddar cheese and a bit of fetta)

Tuscan Chicken

(Post number 50!!)

This was delicious. Of course. Good old Karen Martini recipe once more. She suggests to BBQ the chicken pieces but I actually roasted the pieces in the oven with some 'smashed potatoes', 2 garlic clove heads and some big onion rings, which caused the juices to become a delicious gravy, once the pulp from the cooked garlic was added. I baked in the oven for 50 odd minutes at 230C. And I served it with a handful of mixed lettuce leaves. Delicious.

If using a BBQ, Karen suggests to serve this with a dressed lettuce salad and a simple potato salad (or baked potatoes). Either way, you will enjoy it.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked and coarsely chopped

4 tbs Dijon mustard

1/3 cup (80 ml) extra virgin olive oil

2 lemons, juiced and zested

salt flakes and freshly ground pepper

1 x 1.5 kg chicken, cut into 8 pieces

lemon wedges to serve

Method

To make the marinade, place the garlic and rosemary in a small bowl. Add mustard, olive oil, lemon juice and zest. Stir well to combine and season to taste. Pour marinade over chicken, cover and leave in fridge for 40 minutes or overnight.

Preheat a BBQ to hot, then cook chicken, skin-side down, for 8-10 minutes. Turn chicken, reduce heat and cook for a further 8-10 minutes or until cooked through. Transfer to platter, keep warm and allow to rest for 2 minutes before serving with lemon wedges.

Serves 4-6

Roast Spiced Chicken on Harissa with Herbs and Watercress

I made this for dinner last night and the chicken was delightful! (Sorry, not the best photo!) However, next time I do this chicken I won't necessarily serve it on the harissa and with the herbs and watercress. I would serve it with a green salad and roast potatoes. Lyndon liked the harissa (see recipe on previous post) with the chicken but it was too spicy for me. The chicken though, mmmm....

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

3 tsp baharat*

2 tsp ground fennel

5 large cloves garlic, crushed

2 1/2 tsp salt flakes

freshly ground black pepper

3 sprigs thyme

1 x 1.4 kg free-range chicken, butterflied with breast bone attached

3/4 cup (180ml) extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup fresh harissa (see previous post)

Flat-leaf parsley and coriander or mint leaves, and watercress sprigs, to serve

Lime wedges (optional) to serve

Method

For the marinade, place baharat, fennel, garlic, salt, 10 grinds black pepper and thyme in a small bowl and stir well to combine. make horizontal cuts through flesh of chicken breast and legs. Rub marinade well into skin. Place chicken in a plastic bag and leave in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 220C. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Place chicken in pan and brown on all sides. Transfer to a baking dish and roast for 40-50 minutes or until cooked through and golden.

To serve, spread harissa on a platter, place chicken on top, scatter with sprigs of herbs and watercress and add lime wedges, if using.

Serves 4

*Baharat is a Turkish spice blend that combines pepper with any or all of the following: paprika, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, star anise and nutmeg. (I actually had most of these spices so I blended them together to make up 3 tsp)

Harissa Spread

A pretty spicy but sweet spread to be used in recipes or in sandwiches. If kept in refrigerator, will keep for 3-4 days. (Looks like pumpkin soup doesn't it?)

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
1 bulb garlic
1 large red capsicum
10 large red chillies (I used 8 medium-sized)
1 tbs cumin seeds
3 tsp caraway seeds
150ml tomato passata
5 pinches salt flakes
2 tbs castor sugar

1/2 cup (125ml) olive oil

Method
Preheat oven to 160C. Place garlic, capsicum and chillies in a baking dish and roast for 20 minutes. Remove chillies, place in a bowl, cover with plastic film and leave for 10 minutes. Continue roasting garlic and capsicum for a further 10 minutes. Place capsicum in a bowl, cover with plastic film and leave for 10 minutes. Remove seeds and skin from chillies and capsicum.

Heat a frying pan over high heat. Add cumin and caraway seeds and toast for 2 minutes. Grind the seeds in a mortar and pestle.

Squeeze garlic pulp out of skins and combine with capsicum, chilli, caraway, tomato passata, salt, sugar and olive oil in a food processor or blender and process until smooth.

Makes about 1 cup

Sicilian Spaghetti Al'olio

A different way to serve spaghetti, that's for sure. It was rather tasty and very easy. Both Lyndon and Monet liked it.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
500g fresh spaghetti (I used dried)
1/2 cup (125ml) extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, very finely sliced
2 small red chillies, very finely sliced
2 handfuls spinach, chopped
1 handful flat-leaf parsley, torn
1 lemon, juiced and zested
salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
10 thin slices sourdough baguette, fried in oil until crisp and seasoned, then pulsed in a food processor until crumbled
Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated (I used Parmesan)

Method
Cook spaghetti in a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water for 8 minutes, or until al dente. Drain.

Heat half the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic and chilli and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add spinach, parsley and lemon zest and stir. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat. Add pasta to frying pan with lemon juice and remaining oil. Add sourdough crumbs and toss to combine. Check seasoning. Serve immediately with the parmigiano reggiano.

Serves 4

Caesar Salad

This recipe is so very delicious and very authentic. Trust me when I say that it is actually pretty much restaurant quality. True. And here am I say that about my own cooking! *blush*

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where the Heart Is'*

Ingredients
1 bulb garlic
1 cup (300g) egg mayonnaise
2 tbs sour cream
8 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 clove garlic, finely chopped
splash of vinegar
4 free-range eggs (60g each)
3 baby cos lettuces, very outed leaves removed and each cut into 6 wedges, leaving core intact
1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
1/2 bunch chives, finely chopped
1 red onion, finely sliced
3 tbs small capers
10 slices pancetta, roasted at 165C for 5-7 minutes
150g shaved Parmesan
extra lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper
4 slices sourdough bread
extra clove garlic and olive oil to serve

Method
To make the dressing, roast the garlic bulb at 150C for 30 minutes, then cut and squeeze flesh out. Combine roasted garlic flesh, mayonnaise, sour cream, anchovies, lemon juice and chopped garlic in a food processor and process until smooth. If the mix is too stiff, add a little lemon juice until dressing is sauce-like. Set aside.

Bring a saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil and add a splash of vinegar. Slide in eggs and poach for 3-5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

Arrange lettuce on plates and drizzle over dressing. Scatter parsley, chives, onion and capers over lettuce.

Place an egg on each plate, crumble pancetta over eggs and shave over some Parmesan, add a squeeze of extra lemon juice and, if desired, grind over black pepper.

Toast the bread, rub with an extra clove or garlic, then drizzle with olive oil and cut into fingers. Serve immediately.

Serves 4

Spinach, Herb, Rocotta & Fetta Filo Pastry Pie

A relatively easy recipe to prepare. I cheated and used pre-packaged frozen spinach... Can be eaten hot or cold and served with Tzatziki. To be honest with you I wasn't a big fan of it - maybe there was too much spinach for my liking and not enough cheese. Next time I'd probably cut down the spinach to 500g and increase the ricotta to 500g. But that is just my opinion. The biggest surprise though was that Lyndon actually really liked it. He normally doesn't like things like this...

*Taken from (you-guessed-it) Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
150ml extra virgin olive oil
1 brown onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbs capers, chopped
800-900g spinach (with stems), coarsely chopped
4 sprigs mint, leaves picked and torn
4 sprigs oregano, leaves picked and torn
4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked and torn
2 eggs, lightly beaten
250g ricotta
120g fetta, crumbled
salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
12 large sheets filo pastry
2 tsp ground fennel seeds

Method

Heat 50ml of the olive oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add capers and half the spinach and cook for 4-5 minutes. Drain in a colander and press out excess liquid. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Add a little more oil to the pan and cook herbs and remaining spinach until wilted. Drain in a colander and press out excess liquid. Add to bowl. Stir eggs, ricotta and fetta into spinach mixture and mix well. Season.

Preheat oven to 165C.

Grease a round 20cm cake tin and line the base with baking paper. Keep the filo covered with a damp towel while working so it doesn't dry out. Place two pastry pastry sheets on a lightly floured surface and brush with olive oil. Repeat twice more. Place half the spinach mixture along the center of pastry and roll length ways. Place roll in a circle around the inside of the cake tin. Make another roll with remaining pastry and spinach mixture. Place in cake tin and wind around to completely cover the base of the tin. Brush with olive oil, scatter with fennel seeds, salt and pepper. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden. Cool before serving.

Serves 6

Angel-Hair Pasta with Butter, Soft Goat's Curd, Chervil and Chives

To begin with I have to say that I could not find any fresh Chervil ANYWHERE so substituted chervil for fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley. After all, Chervil is a French Parsley so I figured Italian was just as good, yes? And goat's curd? Well, I'm pretty sure the marinated fetta I bought wasn't goat's but it was absolutely delicious.... A very quick and easy dinner!

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
150g unsalted butter
500g fresh angel-hair pasta (I used dried angel-hair spaghetti)
1/2 cup chives, finely chopped
3/4 cup chervil, coarsely chopped
150g fresh soft goats curd or marinated soft goats fetta, crumbled
salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
shaved Parmesan (optional) to serve

Method
Cut butter into small cubes and set aside at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

Cook pasta in a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water for 2-3 minutes or until al dente. Drain, then add butter and toss to combine. Stir through chives, chervil and goat's cheese. Season with salt and cracked pepper. Drizzle generously with extra virgin olive oil. Serve immediately, scattered with Parmesan, if desired.

Serves 4

Sauteed Potato and Chorizo

This is a very simple potato side dish to make. It is soooo tasty (trust me) and I will surely be making it again soon.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

1/2 cup (125ml) extra virgin olive oil

200g hot chorizo sausage, chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely sliced

4 golden shallots, halved and sliced

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp sweet paprika

2 fresh bay leaves (I used dried)

800g small desiree potatoes, peeled and cut into 5mm thick slices

salt flakes and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup (125ml) white wine

1 cup (250ml) water

4 sprigs oregano

Method

Heat a little of the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add chorizo, garlic, shallots, cayenne, paprika and bay leaves and stir for 1 minute. Add potato slices and remaining oil and stir. Season to taste and add wine. Bring to the boil, then add water and oregano sprigs. Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid is almost evaporated and the potatoes are caramelised on the bottom of the pan. Adjust seasoning if necessary and serve.

Serves 4

Tuna Nicoise

This recipe was delicious, besides the fact it took some fiddling about. It was worth the trouble. An absolute taste sensation and I will surely be making this again in the very near future. I didn't use the tuna steaks, instead I used Yellowfin Tuna in Oil from a tin (which was recommend if fresh tuna not available to use.) Please make it and you won't be disappointed. And yes, yet another Karen Martini recipe...

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
4 free-range eggs (60g each)
splash of vinegar
1/2 bunch basil leaves, finely chopped
1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
150ml extra virgin olive oil
salt flakes and freshly ground pepper
250g small green beans, trimmed
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 punnet (250g) red cherry tomatoes, quartered (I used grape tomatoes)
100g butter, chopped
6 anchovy fillets, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2tbs plain yoghurt
4 yellowfin tuna steaks (120g each)
3 large Desiree or kipfler potatoes, peeled and boiled in lightly salted water, then thinly sliced and tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper and kept warm
1tbs small capers
16 black olives
lemon wedges to serve

Method
Bring a saucepan of lightly salted water to the boil and add a splash of vinegar. Slide in the eggs and poach for 3-5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm.

Place herbs in a bowl, add 50ml olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook beans in lightly salted boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Drain and add hot beans immediately to herb and oil mix. Add onion and cherry tomatoes and toss to combine.

To make the anchovy sauce, place butter, remaining olive oil, anchovies and garlic in a small saucepan. Use a wooden spoon to stir over low heat until anchovies dissolve, then season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Mix mayonnaise and yoghurt in a separate bowl.

On a hot barbecue or in a hot non-stick pan, sear the lightly oiled tuna or cook to your liking (2-3 minutes for rare, 3-4 minutes for medium, 4-6 minutes for well done).

To serve, spread the mayonnaise on four plates, arrange potato slices over and top with tuna. Spoon on the bean mix and scatter capers and olives. Place egg on top and spoon over hot anchovy sauce. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

Serves 4

Eggplant Involtini with Ricotta, Mozzarella and Tomato

Not ever haven made anything involving eggplant before, I was pretty keen on trying this recipe. Monet was not keen on tasting it (something to do with her being tired me thinks!) but Lyndon thought it was really nice and I tend to agree with him. Give it a go, you will not be disappointed.

I must say here, that the Karen Martini book I have been using is simply wonderful. I think this is my ninth recipe of hers that I have tried and posted about on this blog!!

*Taken from the Karen Martini book 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

3 eggs

2 large eggplants (I used 1)

1/2 cup plain flour

300ml olive oil, for frying

250g ricotta

salt flakes and freshly ground pepper

3 tbs currants, soaked in red wine vinegar for 5 mins, then drained

1/2 cup (40 g) grated Parmesan

200 g mozzarella, cut into 1 cm-thick slices (I used grated)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (I did NOT add this)

2 cups (500 ml) tomato passata

2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, chopped

50 g pine nuts, coarsely chopped

3 tbs coarse breadcrumbs

Method

In a small shallow bowl, lightly beat 2 eggs with 1 tbs water. Cut the eggplants lengthways into 1 cm-thick slices. Dust the eggplant slices with flour, then dip in the egg-wash. Heat oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over high heat. Cook eggplant slices for 1-2 minutes on each side or until golden. Drain well on kitchen paper.

In a medium bowl, mix ricotta with remaining egg. Season with salt and pepper. Add the drained currants and half the Parmesan and stir to combine. Spoon about 1 tbs of the ricotta mixture onto each eggplant slice. Add a stick of mozzarella and roll up tightly.

Preheat oven to 170C. Brush the base of a large ovenproof dish with 1 tbs of the extra virgin olive oil. Spread half of the tomato passata in the base of dish. Place the eggplant rolls on the tomato, seam-side down so they don't unroll. Drizzle with remaining oil (which I didn't do!), spoon over remaining passata and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan.

Combine parsley, pine nuts and breadcrumbs in a small bowl. Sprinkle over the top. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and gooey.

Serve with a mixed-leaf salad dressed with balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.

Chow-Mein-Style Beef with Cabbage, Peas and Vermicelli

I like a good chow-mein. It warms the soul. This recipe was a little different from what I was used from and a hell of a lot more spicy, but still delicious. I recommend only a quick dash of chilli powder (if any), I think I put too much in it for my liking but I coped. Lyndon is a fan of hot and spicy food so he thought it was really good, even if he usually doesn't like Chow-Mein.

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where the Heart is'*

Ingredients
3 tbs olive oil
400g beef mince
2 pinches Chinese five-spice powder
2 pinches chilli powder (optional)
1 large brown onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
50g fresh ginger, grated
1/4 cabbage, finely sliced
1 1/2 tbs oyster sauce
100ml tamari* (I used 30ml normal soy sauce)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1/2 cup frozen peas
4 spring onions, sliced diagonally
3 green chillies, sliced
100g vermicelli (thin rice noodles) cooked in boiling water for 1 1/2 mins
salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method
Heat oil in a large wok over very high heat. Add beef and cook, stirring to break up, for 3-5 minutes or until well browned. Sprinkle in five-spice powder and chilli powder if using.

Add onion, garlic and ginger and stir. Add sliced cabbage and 125ml hot water and stir again. Stir in oyster sauce, tamari and sesame oil. Add peas, spring onions, chillies and noodles. Stir, then, if needed, add a splash more hot water. Check seasoning and serve immediately.

Serves 4

I actually cooked mine in my French Chasseur dish instead of a wok. I kept it at a low heat after doing all the above steps and added a bit more water and a handful of rice. It was pretty spicy before I did all that and I wanted Monet to be able to eat it without her telling me it was "too spicy".

*Tamari is a naturally fermented soy sauce made from soybeans and without any wheat. It is usually darked in colour than the more common soy sauce

Provencale Capsicums

I made this for dinner tonight not expecting Lyndon to go on (and on) about it! He loved it. So flavoursome and tasty he thought and I tended to agree with him. He said if he had to mark me out of 10 I would have got 10 out of 10 for this meal! What a compliment hey...

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
2 punnets (500 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
5 tbs black olives, pitted and finely chopped
4 sprigs oregano, torn
4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
4 red capsicums, halved and seeded
3/4 cup (55 g) homemade breadcrumbs
1/2 cup (125 ml) extra virgin olive oil
8 anchovy fillets, sliced length ways

Method
Preheat oven to 150C.

Combine tomatoes, olives, herbs and garlic in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Place capsicum halves on a lightly greased baking tray and fill with the tomato mixture. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and drizzle with olive oil. Place anchovies on top in a crisscross pattern. Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 25 minutes until soft and golden. Serve with pan juices served over.

Serves 4-8

Genovese Salad

You can probably see by this blog that I have this 'thing' for potato salad. I was never a big fan of potato salad when growing up, I'm not sure why. I guess I am on a quest to find the perfect potato salad. This one is yummy and pretty different from the 'usual'. It's a good cross between both Potato salad and Pesto Pasta salad - Lyndon thought it was delicious. I did find with this one, that I seemed to use a hell of a lot of dishes. Someone buy me a dishwasher and I'll stop complaining here. Hehe...

*Taken from Karen Maritin's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients
6 small Desiree potatoes (I used Golden Delight)
50ml extra virgin olive oil
50ml red wine vinegar
200gm green beans, trimmed
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
200gm lasagnette pasta
100ml pesto
1 cup spinach leaves, shredded
30g pine nuts
Salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method
Cook potatoes in a medium-sized saucepan of lightly salted boiling water for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain, reserving cooking liquid. Slice potatoes thickly and toss with 2tbs of the olive oil and the vinegar.

Cook beans in lightly salted boiling water for about 3 minutes or until just cooked. Drain. Cook peas in reserved cooking liquid for 1 minute. Drain. Cook pasta in lightly salted boiling water until just past al dente. Drain, then transfer to a bowl and stir through the remaining oil and half of the pesto. Add shredded spinach to hot pasta and stir through until wilted. Add potatoes, beans and peas and remaining pesto and pine nuts and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve at room temperature.

Serves 4-6

Roast Chicken with Lemon, Thyme, Garlic & Smashed Potatoes

Sometimes I crave a good hearty roast. I like them because they are easy to do and I never really follow recipes to prepare a roast. I did last night though. It was different from our usual roasts but oh so yummy... And yes, it is another Karen Martini recipe - I sure am getting my monies worth out of her cookbook!!

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

8 medium Desiree potatoes

1 x 1.3 to 1.6 kg free-range chicken

60g butter, chopped

8 sprigs thyme, crushed

salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

200ml extra virgin olive oil (I didn't use that much!)

1 lemon, halved

3 bulbs garlic, unpeeled and separated into cloves

1 brown onion, sliced into thick rings

1/2 cup (125 ml) water

green salad to serve

Method

Place unpeeled potatoes in a large saucepan of lightly salted water over medium heat. Bring to the boil, then cook for 25 minutes or until tender. Drain.

Preheat oven to 240C. Gently separate skin from the chicken breasts. Slide knobs of butter and half the thyme under the skin. Rub chicken with salt and pepper. Pour half the oil over the chicken. Squeeze half a lemon over chicken then place squeezed lemon inside cavity. Use the back of a large knife to lightly crush about a quarter of the garlic, then place crushed garlic in cavity. Scatter onion rings over the base of a baking dish and place the chicken on top. Slice remaining lemon half. Scatter lemon and remaining garlic around the chicken. Sprinkle the remaining thyme over chicken and into cavity.

Gently press potatoes with a potato masher until skins burst and they are about 2 cm thick. Place around chicken in baking dish, drizzle with remaining olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Pour water into baking pan. Roast chicken for 1 hour or until the juices run clear when flesh is pierced with a skewer. Remove from oven and set aside to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Carve the chicken, drizzle with the pan juices and serve with roast potatoes and garlic and a dressed green salad.

Serves 4

Michael's Baked Cannellini Beans with Chirizo, Egg & Fetta

This is a lovely fragrant dish and is apparently a very good hangover fix! Considering once how much I hated cannellini beans, they really add to this delicious dish. It is easy to make and would actually make a delicious topping to some pasta. I will add though, for future reference, that Monet said, "don't like it".

(I actually halved this recipe and cooked it in 2 individual clay pot dishes I own, so we each sat on the couch with our own dish and indulged...)

*Taken from Karen Martini's 'Where The Heart Is'*

Ingredients

Olive oil, for cooking

8cm spicy chorizo sausage, diced

3 golden shallots, finely sliced

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

4 sprigs oregano, torn

1 bay leaf

2 x 400g cans cannellini, drained and rinsed

1/3 cup (80 ml) red-wine vinegar

4 tbs tomato paste

1 x 400g can crushed tomatoes

salt flacks and freshly ground black pepper

4 free-range eggs

150g fetta

50ml extra virgin olive oil

toasted sourdough fingers, to serve

Method

Heat a little oil in a heavy based saucepan over medium heat, add chorizo and fry for 3-5 minutes. Add shallots, garlic, oregano and bay leaf and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Stir in beans, vinegar, tomato paste, tomatoes and 2-3 tablespoons water and simmer for about 15 minutes or until thick. Season to taste.

Preheat oven to 170C. Pour mixture into a medium (1.5 litre capacity) ovenproof dish. Use the back of a spoon to make 4 holes in mixture. Crack eggs into holes.

Crumble fetta over the top, drizzle with olive oil and bake in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until the eggs are cooked but still runny. Serve with toasted sourdough fingers on the side.

Serves 4