ROASTED CAULIFLOWER AND CURRIED COCONUT & LEEK SOUP

This recipe came into existence from a matter of praticality. I was roasting the cauliflower in the oven and prepping the other ingredients when I realised that I had no onions. I called my neighbour and she only had a quarter of one inside of her fridge. Home alone with two kids at witching hour, there was no way I was going to risk bundling everyone into the car to buy one onion. Inside of my fridge I spied two flat leek tops sticking out from the bottom drawer, they would do. I usually use vegetable stock, but today I used a beef stock just because it was found inside of my pantry during my search for an onion and I had dreams of making a bacon dust to top the soup, but I got impatient and just diced and fried the bacon and placed it on top of the soup in a heap.

CURRIED ROASTED CAULIFLOWER, COCONUT & LEEK SOUP

(Serves 4 - 5, prep 10 mins and cooking time 30 mins)

A dollop of coconut oil

A splash of olive oil

1 head of cauliflower

**1 can of coconut milk

1 litre stock

1 leek, sliced
***1 potato, diced

2 garlic cloves, sliced

1 heaped tbs dried cumin

1 heaped tbs dried corriander

1 heaped tbs tumeric

large pinch of salt

pepper to taste

4 - 5 rashers of bacon

1. Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees

2. Cut cauliflower into chunks and lay out onto a baking

 tray and drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt 

3.  Roast the cauliflower in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes, or until it is lightly browned. 

Remove from oven and rest on the bench

4. Heat coconut oil on a medium heat in a large pot, then add the sliced leek, diced potato and sliced garlic and stir around for about five minutes and then add the spices and coat the leek and garlic in the spices, keep doing this until the spices become fragrant, about 3 - 5 minutes

5. Toss the roasted cauliflower into the pot with the curried leek and garlic, 

add the stock and bring to the boil and then lower the heat to a gentle simmer, 

then add the can of coconut milk

6. Stir to combine, and then either blend with a handheld mixer or blender

7. Heat a small fry pan on a medium high heat, thinly dice the bacon and then add to the hot fry pan,

stiry fry until browned and crispy

8. Serve soup in generous bowls and top with handfuls of fried bacon.

**To make it a creamier soup, half the amount of stock and add an extra can of coconut milk and a half a cup of water.
*** A potato is used to thicken the soup, this can be replaced with 1/4 cup of any type of cooked bean 
or uncooked lentils or rice

 

This recipe was adapted from one of my favourites from when I used to be strictly vegan, just leave out the bacon and be sure to use a vegetable stock, or just plain water with a bit of extra salt if you are making this for your vegan friends.

 

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GENEROSITY

Gotta love it when lunch is a no brainer. A yummy chunky vegetable soup dropped off by my generous neighbour which I paired up with a delicious pumpkin cob from the Green Tangerine which I picked up earlier in the day.

How often do you share recipes and food swap with your neighbours?

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WINTER'S END

We didn't know what to do with this bouquet of purple kale. I spied a purple kale pesto in the making on Luisa Brimble's Instagram feed a few weeks back and I only remembered it after using up all of the kale this morning. This morning we ended up sauteeing it with some red onion and chilli and topping it with some poached eggs, all sitting on top of some buttered up toast. The perfect breakfast for the last weekend of winter. 

What is your favourite kale recipe? I always seem to pair it up with eggs!!!

SAUTEED KALE & RED CHILLI w POACHED EGGS

(Serves 2, approx 10 mins prep and 10 mins cooking)

6 - 7 stalks of kale

1 red onion

1 large red chilli

dollop of coconut oil

spash of olive oil

splash of soy sauce

4 eggs

1 lemon

bread for toasting

salt and pepper to taste

1. Fill a small pot half way with water and squeeze half a lemon into it and bring to the boil on a medium heat

2. Dollop some coconut oil into a medium sized frying pan and heat until the oil is hot

3. Thinly slice the kale, red onion and red chilli and toss into the frying pan, 

stir and coat the kale in the oil and splash with olive oil if it's a bit dry, 

turn the heat down to medium/low and splash some soy sauce over the mixture, 

stir around until the kale is sauteed and the onions are glassy and then remove from the heat

4. Stir the boiling water with a spoon and crack four eggs into the water, 

they are ready when egg whites are firm and the egg is kinda starting to float 

(usually only a couple of minutes)

5. Toast your bread and butter lavishly

6. Spoon the kale mixture over your toast and top with poached eggs 

and season with salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon.

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WINTER BREAKFAST

The last weeks of Winter have been slow and drawn out with grey and wet weather, but it's ok because the brighter days of Spring are only a few sleeps away. My favourite part about winter is that it makes having a hot breakfast totally appropriate. Last night I spied a wintry breakfast here and today's inspired breakfast was a hit. Usually, the only porridge eaters in my home are the girls but today the boys were asking for a bowl of porridge too.

WINTRY BREAKFAST BOWL

Porridge

Banana

Chia Seeds

Peanut Butter

Coconut flakes

Milk

Honey

Coconut Oil

1. Make yourself a pot of porridge

2. Heat a tablespoon of coconut oil in a small fry pan on a medium high heat

3. Cut banana in half and then half again, length ways

4. Place banana's, sliced side down into the hot fry pan and fry until caramalised and golden on one side

5. Place porridge into bowl, top with a spoonful of peanut butter and honey and place caramalised banana on top and sprinkle with chia seeds and coconut flakes

6. Gently pour some warmed milk over the porridge.

Enjoy with sips of coffee or tea.

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SUMMER DREAMING

Today the rain stopped and out came the sun, along with our craving for an early dinner. Takeaway fish and chips is always a winner in our home, particularly when the sun is shining and the afternoon is long.

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GREY CLOUDS DELIVER MORE THAN JUST RAIN

Love and sweet thoughts penned from across the seas. 

Nothing brightens someone's day better than a hand written letter.

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FLOWER BRAIDING

Baby is sleeping and I am waiting for her to wake so that we can head off to Mother's Group. I am obsessed with this marble platter which is my star purchase of the month . Whilst it is a platter, I have been a bit indulgent and using it as a solo dish for myself and today it is the most beautiful backdrop to show off the tail end of life in these flowers and herbs from my kitchen.
 

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AFTERNOON DELIGHTS

The sunshine was cool by the time we came home from school today and we feasted on some summery fruits that we bought over the weekend. He read out his home reader as I set out the table and before I managed to bring the second cup of tea over, he was already sneaking into the cherries.

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Kodak Portra 400

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BRUNCH BY THE SEA

Whilst I am feeling tired lately, I could never tire of this. Long mornings spent with friends and a good old B&E roll for brunch.We sat inside of this warm and cosy cafe which is tucked into the corner of a bay so that it sits right by the sea. Our babes slept as we chatted and decided on what to order. On cue, they started to rustle from their sleep as the waitress kindly put down our plates in front of us. Mine stayed asleep, but hers wanted to sit and play. She was very nifty at eating with one hand, as most mother's seem to be.

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Kodak Portra 400

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TODAY AT THE MARKETS

I had a small pocket of time to myself today. Matty was at home with the kids and they were all fed and ready to rest after a busy morning. I packed my bag and took off by foot. Today our local markets were on and I really love to wander and eat and chat. Sometimes that can be hard to do when you are trying to navigate a pram and keep up with a five year old who is weaving quickly through the crowd, so my intention was to make the most of being solo.

Today I walked across the beach and through a stream of water connecting the lake to the beach. Barefoot and with ankle drenched jeans I found myself wandering the markets walking in the direction of my first priority. Food. I usually go for the gozleme's, they are my go-to-market food but today I went for the "porkwich". It turned out to be an equally delicious decision! Something beyond taste transfers into you when see that the people who are preparing your food are smiling and today it made me feel chatty. On my way back through the markets I enjoyed pausing my steps to savour long conversations with friends and stall holders before I quickly hop-stepped my way along the beach and through the stream of water back home to my family. 

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SURPRISE, CHRISTMAS IN JULY!!

I was feeling jittery with excitement. I kept watch as we waited for them to knock on the door.

I am terrible at keeping secrets and the anticipation was making me feel faint. Bing Crosby was crooning his christmas songs as the guys tried to keep an eye on who was winning the surfing while the kids played in front of the television and us girls busied ourselves getting the food ready and setting the table. There were a couple of false knocks at the door which were enough to have me break out into a small sweat and go crazy hissing and yelling to everyone to sit at their seats at the table, and as annoying as it was, it was fantastic opportunity to perfect our surprise. The real knock was faint and unassuming and when we opened the door to them, seeing her face brighten and shy away into her hands made my eyes well up with salty drops. 

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Images taken using Canon 5D Markiii//50mm 1.4

Kodak Portra 160 & Ilford HP5

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