Dhal

You can dial down the heat for children - we call this "Roald Dahl Dhal" in our house.  Just omit the chilli.

Serves 6 (or a family of four with leftovers for lunch the next day).  I sometimes serve this with Prue's beef curry to make a curry banquet for a crowd.  I often double the recipe and freeze half.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 long red chilli, finely chopped OR 1 teaspoon crushed chilli from a jar
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
400g can diced tomatoes
1 1/4 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup split yellow peas - soak for 30 minutes, rinse and drain
1/4 cup red lentils, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup green split peas, rinsed and drained


Method:

Half an hour before you start, soak the yellow peas.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over high heat.  Saute onion, garlic, chilli and ginger for 3-4 minutes until onion is soft.

Add the cumin, coriander and turmeric.  Stir for one minute.

Mix in tomatoes, stock, split peas and lentils.  Bring to the boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, covered about 30 minutes until dhal is tender.

Top with fresh, chopped coriander if you wish.  Serve with basmati rice (you won't need much), sour cream or unsweetened yoghurt, fruit chutney and poppadums.

Meal plan for week beginning 28th October 2013

Monday: Pork sausages, potato and sweet potato mash, steamed asparagus and green beans
Tuesday: Leek, potato and bacon soup with fresh bread rolls
Wednesday: Caesar salad
Thursday: Lamb and barley stew in the slow cooker
Friday: Dhal, basmati rice, poppadoms, sour cream and fruit chutney
Saturday: Burgers with homemade barbecue sauce
Sunday: Nachos

Meal plan for the week beginning 14th October

PIE away for the week so chicken features often on the menu (he won't touch it).

Monday:  Goulash with slabs of warmed Turkish bread
Tuesday: Vegetable, split pea and barley soup
Wednesday: Chicken and mushroom special
Thursday: A hot barbeque chicken from the butcher at our local Harris Farm, served with a jacket potato (with sour cream and fruit chutney) and steamed green beans
Friday: Leftover chicken, in a salad with some garlic bread on the side
Saturday: Sausage casserole - an old family recipe, will post next week
Sunday: Takeaway pizza over an early evening DVD with the kids

Goulash

A simple, tasty stew from the Destitute Gourmet, adapted ever so slightly by me.

Serves 4 to 8

2-3 tablespoons of oil
1 kg stewing steak, cubed
2 medium onions in chunks
1 tablespoon paprika
2 large tomatoes, or substitute tinned tomatoes
3 or 4 potatoes, cubed
1 capsicum, sliced
1/2 teaspoon thyme
bay leaf
salt and pepper
750 ml stock
Sour cream to serve

Optional thickening: 2 tablespoons of flour, 1/2 cup tomato paste

Heat oil in large saucepan, brown meat and onion.  Add paprika, stir until meat is coated (don't let paprika burn).  Add tomatoes, potatoes, capsicum, herbs, salt and pepper and stock and bring to the boil.  Simmer gently for 1 1/2 hours.
If you need to thicken, combine flour and tomato paste and add to saucepan.  Serve with a dollop of sour cream and some nice bread to mop up the juices.

Quiche Lorraine

I use two different recipes for this pie - Annabel Langbein's food processor pastry and a modified classic Quiche Lorraine filling.  It makes two quiches so I cover one with cling film and put it in the freezer.  To reheat, remove from the freezer at least one hour before serving and and bake at 160 C until warmed through (15-20 minutes).  You could use two sheets of store-bought savoury shortcrust pastry instead, but this pastry is seriously easy and quick to make.

Annabel Langbein's Food Processor Pastry

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
150g butter
About 4 tbsp of cold water (I find it usually needs a bit more)

Preheat oven to 200 C and line two quiche dishes with baking paper.

Place the flour, salt and butter in a food processor and whizz to fine crumbs.  With the motor running, add the water a little at a time, until the mixture comes together in a ball.

Halve the mixture and press into the base and sides of the quiche dishes, cover with baking paper, weight with baking beans or rice and bake blind until lightly golden (about 12-15 minutes).

While pastry cooks, prepare the filling:

Quiche Lorraine filling

2 onions, finely chopped
6 bacon rashers, chopped
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups grated tasty cheese

Cook onion and bacon in frying pan until onion is soft.  Drain excess fat, cool slightly before spreading into cooked pastry cases.

Beat eggs in a bowl with whisk, add milk, sour cream and cheese, whisk until just combined.

Pour half into each pastry case, bake at 180 C for about 35 minutes or until filling is set and golden brown.  Stand quiche for 5 minutes before removing from tin.

Variations: sometimes I will sprinkle a little crumbled blue cheese or feta over the top, or throw in some asparagus spears

Meal plan for the week beginning 7th October 2013

Kids back to school this week so easy dishes on the menu.


Monday (public holiday): Roast lamb, roast potatoes, steamed asparagus and frozen peas, with gravy and mint sauce

Tuesday: Warm salad with leftover lamb (doused in gravy then re-heated and piled on top of the salad).  Using cos, and assembling everything at the last minute, means the lettuce stays crisp
Wednesday: Vege and bacon soup from the freezer (book club tonight)
Thursday: Nachos
Friday: Another salad - this time with bacon, feta, asparagus and avocado
Saturday: Maybe a quiche with the leftover bacon?
Sunday: Goulash with Turkish bread