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

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

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LEEK & KALE QUITATTA

 

Yum cha was cancelled today and it was raining and Vinnie had finally fallen asleep, so I decided to bake a quiche, well my version of a quiche (maybe it's formerly known as a fritatta?). I usually make this in a bigger baking dish, but today we had no eggs in the fridge and Matty had collected only three eggs from our chickens this morning. I really love this meal and it's a regular one in my home. Sometimes I add mushrooms or fetta cheese and sometimes I use lebanese bread as a quick and easy faux pastry bottom. Today I just divided the mixture into two ramekins and greedily topped them with cheese. Waiting for them to bake, I finally got to sink my eyeballs into Oak The Nordic Journal which had arrived at perfect timing. If you like magazines and you get the chance to buy it or read it somewhere, I strongly suggest that you do. It's a wonderful insight into Nordic lifestyle and culture - the subject matter and writing is very fresh and interesting and coupled with the beautiful simplistic, natural photography and the layout and design, it makes for a very straight forward but enigmatic magazine. I say that because I keep going back to it and I have probably picked it up about another three times since I received it this afternoon. Back to my Quitatta, when my little babies were ready I slid them out of the oven and they were pretty horrendous looking - the result of too much cheese and because I love cheese, I can never be frugal with it, so this always happens with any meal containing cheese. It wasn't as yummy as a steamed pork bun, but it was perfect for this rainy afternoon at home.

 KALE & LEEK QUITATTA

(approx. 10 mins prep, 25 minutes baking. serves 2)

3 eggs

splash of water

splash of milk

splash of soy sauce

two stalks of thinly sliced kale

two bulbs of thinly sliced leek

thinly sliced garlic

a dash of coconut oil

a few drizzles of olive oil

freshly cracked pepper

grated cheese 
salt and pepper

Step 1: preheat oven to 200 degrees

Step 2: lightly beat first four ingredients in a bowl

Step 3: put pan on medium heat and melt coconut oil, add kale, leek and garlic and sautee gently on a medium-low heat, add a few drizzles of olive oil if it looks too dry

Step 4: tip out the sauteed kale, leek and garlic from the pan and into the egg mixture and gently stir

Step 5: divide mixture into two small dishes or ramekins

Step 6: place into oven and set timer for ten minutes

Step 7: take them out of the oven and top with grated cheese and place back into the oven for 10 - 15 minutes, or until the cheese is golden and the quiche is firm to touch with the back of a spoon

Step 8: Season to your liking with salt and pepper.

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HOW TO REST

1. Start with some baking. Today I made pastry-less quiche made using local leek, kale and eggs with a crumble of fetta cheese on top and a with splash of my secret ingredient - soy sauce, and I usually crack some pepper over the top prior to serving. 

2. Then you enjoy that hot cup of tea next to you and quiet literally inhale the almond crescent biscuits. I cheated and bought these from my local fruit store. They make them fresh!

3. Once you have gobbled your way through all of that, it's time to start thumbing through the stack of magazines underneath your dish.

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MY CHOOKIES EGGS

 

Although it was a bit of a stop-start kind of a feast due to our babes waking and fussing, the conversation, story-telling and laughter smoothly kept us connected as we seemingly took turns in leaving the table to tend to our babes who were playing on the floor around us. The food was an inspired mish mash of my favourite local cafe foods and it was lovely to enjoy the comfort foods at home with friends.

In the Pan: Sauteed kale, mushroom, onion with crumbled fetta and fresh lemon.

Accompaniments: Fresh berries, sourdough bread, avacado, fresh ham, Green Goddess dressing from Healthy Everyday by Pete Evans, fried shallots, gooey raspberry and white chocolate muffins plus chocolate and peanut butter muffins from Oomph Cafe, fresh berries, sauteed mushrooms and freshly laid eggs from my chookies which were softly poached and my gorgeous friend introduced me to the wonderful 'Duffin', a cross between a Donut and a Muffin.

Drinks: Fresh orange juice, tea, and fresh locally ground coffee.

Music: NYC SKA/JAZZ playlist on Spotify.

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

Kodak Portra 400

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ONCE I WAS A KALE MODEL

Oh my goodness, I am still letting it all sink in. Yesterday my friend and I attended a food photography workshop organised by Billy Law, guest starring Luisa Brimble. It was worth every penny and the encouragement, insight and knowledge that they shared with all of us exceeded my expectations. The food was gorgeous and delicious and both Luisa and Billy were very hands on in helping all of us find the places where we needed to make camera setting adjustments and with styling. Food photography is a lovely way to get fat.

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

Kodak Portra 400 & Ilford HP5

Please do not use my images without permission.