BROWNED BUTTER & SALTED HONEY PIE

A big storm was brewing up top and I had to look twice at the big plume of clouds loitering and looming in the far distance. I wasn't quiet sure if it was a big bright patch of light or a big fluffy ominous cloud. Then the wind seemed to change direction and pellets of rain began to splat onto our tin roof. The perfect weather to be channelling some Local Milk style and throw in some of my newly aquired workshop skills.

I had been eying off this pie recipe for a couple of weeks and today I made it happen. I have never made pie crust in my life. The sudden darkness and change in wind direction made it feel like something magical and powerful was about to happen and it certainly inspired me to make something different today. Before I started making the pie crust, I slid open the doors and stood by them as I began rubbing the cubes of butter into the flour. Then I felt a swoop. I looked to the right and there was a Kookaburra sitting on the table next to the spare cubes of butter. Cue the Benny Hill soundtrack for the next twenty or so minutes while I tried coaxing the Kookaburra back outside the open doors with a tea towel (I don't know what I was going to do with it should it have turned around and aimed it's huge beak at my face). I don't know what sign mother nature/the universe was trying to give me, perhaps it was telling me that it's time to get my hair in order, or maybe it was a swift reminder of practical advice to install  the flyscreens which Matty removed when we first moved in, all of those years ago. In the bathroom washing my hands, I looked in the mirror and the top knot bun sitting sideways on my head looked something like a rotund bush rat. Besides the Kookaburra this week we have had a menagerie of animals freuqent our home including the usual flurry of bush turkey's who seem to use our house as an actual thoroughfare, a mouse (eek, I seem to be the only one who seems to believe that this is a problem) and a couple of new tails who managed to grace our hallway while I was hanging out the washing to dry. After all of that commotion, the pie crust was rubbed, rolled and chillin' like a villain in  the fridge and the brown butter and honey filling was frothing away on the stovetop. During which I joined the rest of my family up in the backyard and after another comical attempt at rounding up our chickens to go back into their pen, I got my camera out and practiced doing some portrait shots of Matty looking pensive in front of the chicken coop. Yup, my ability to give direction needs a lot of practice...the photo looked like, 'oh hey, remember that time when you looked like a serial killer on death row'. Nailed it. On that note, below is the recipe for the pie, which I acquired from Kinfolk Volume 12. Hope you give it a go.

KINFOLKY BROWN BUTTER & SALTED HONEY PIE

Pie Crust:

1/2 cup of iced water

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp and cubed

1 and a half tsp of sugar

1 1/4 cup of plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg beaten with a splash of water

To make the pie crust, sift the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the cubes of butter and rub together with your fingers until it's roughly combined and slowly add water one tablespoon at a time. Once the dough comes together, ball it up and place on a floured surface and roll out so that it fits the base and up the sides of your pie dish. Cover in cling wrap and place in the fridge for at least one hour.

Filling:

3/4 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup honey

1 cup sugar

2 tbs plain flour

3/4 tsp of salt

1 tbs lemon juice

5 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla essence/paste

1 cup of thickened cream

Himalayan Salt or flaky sea salt for topping

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, bring it up to simmer and foam and will eventually calm down. Stir constantly  and watch it turn golden and then brown which takes about 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat once it turns brown and stir in the honey until it melts and completely dissolves into the butter. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the salt, flour, sugar and then stir in the brown butter mixture, vanilla, lemon juice and whisk in one egg at a time until all combined. Then whisk in the thickened cream.

Pour the filling into the pie crust and bake on the center rack in the oven for 60 - 75 minutes, turning around halfway through the baking time. The pie is done when it is golden brown on top and it should look puffed and still jiggle in the middle quiet a bit. Let it rest at room temperature for at least 4 hours and serve with a sprinkling flaky sea salt.

Thank you for sharing Kinfolk!

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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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CARAMEL ICE-CREAM

This afternoon I experienced the joy of being the ice-cream lady. The extremity of how easy and delicious this recipe is can only be found out by actually making it for yourself. I have to admit, I was a little bit suspicious about how it would turn out considering my past failures regarding ice-cream. I cannot wait to try other variations with different jams and spreads, my boys have already requested Nutella for the next batch. I used Bon Maman caramel spread for this batch and upon serving I sprinkled a small dusting of cracked sea salt.

EASY ICE-CREAM

(Serves 4, prep 10 minutes and 6 hours freezing)

600ml Thickened cream

1 can condensed milk

1 cup of a sweet or chocolatey/caramel spread of your choice

Toppings: fresh fruit, grated chocolate, coco-pops, cornflakes

1. Using a large mixing bowl, pour the cream and beat with an electric mixer for 
a couple of minutes until thickened and kind of frothy

2. Add the condensed milk and continue to beat until mixed through

(be careful not to over-beat)

3.Pour into a shallow dish, I used a square baking tin, but any shallow glass or metal dish would do

4. Dollop in spoonfuls of the chosen jam or chocolate spread and using a bamboo skewer 
swirl the dollops of jam or chocolate/caramel spread through the ice-cream mixture a couple of times

5. Cover with glad wrap and freeze over night, or at least six hours

6. When ready to serve, let sit at room temperature for a couple of minutes before 
scooping into small ramekins, mini waffle cones or espresso cups and enjoy with some toppings.

The original recipe can be found at Cook Republic, along with lots of other drool worthy photography, food stories and amazing recipes.

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WELCOME SPRING

A transition happened today, people were splaying out their egyptian towels and waxing their boards on the beach without a wetsuit. Warmth blew across the seas todays and the water was unbelievably inviting. The heaviness of winter lifted and the timing was perfect. This year has been exciting and full of changes, I have been through some personal struggles which have cast a slight darkness on some of my days, but I have been learning to let go and transition forwards and I feel as though Spring has come at perfect timing. Today I met up with a friend and we both soaked up the fresh salty air and some sunshine while our babes sat happily in their strollers chewing on their teething toys. Afterwards, I took off to do the school pick up and on the way I was in a thought bubble of what to cook for dinner tonight. But I found myself thinking about dessert instead. Arriving home with my kids and two bottles of fresh cream and a jar of Bonne Maman caramel spread, I got to work making some "No churn condensed milk ice-cream" which I spied here. This recipe had me at condensed milk. It's currently in the freezer, freezing - so I will post photographs of my efforts tomorrow. Tomorrow I will celebrate the coming of spring with ice-cream at breakfast.

How will you be celebrating the coming of Spring this week?

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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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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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