FENNEL & ARTICHOKE RISOTTO

I spotted fennel at the weekend fresh food market on several occasions this winter, but was rather scared to cook with it, as I had heard that it had a somewhat liquorice and aniseed quality. I was pleasantly surprised when I decided to take the leap and purchase a large fennel bulb from the Westend markets. Dusting off my Women’s Weekly The Complete Cook, I learnt that fennel is both a vegetable and herb, as its downy leaves can be chopped and used in salads, sauces, soups, rice dishes and fresh salmon like its relative dill. The tops of the fennel bulb can be used as a bed to steam fish and the bulb of the fennel (the part that I used in this recipe) has infinite uses. The bulb can be sautéed, grilled, roasted and stir-fried. I recommend cooking fennel as it does soften the strong aniseed flavour and brings out its natural sweetness. So the lesson here is to experiment with new vegetables, as you never know what you never try. 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 x 400g tin artichokes, drained, rinsed and roughly chopped
• 1/2 a large fennel, trimmed of leaves, washed well and roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon dairy-free margarine, such as Nutalex 
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 5 cups vegetable stock (preferably Massel brand)
• 1 leek, washed and finely chopped
• 2 cups arborio or doongara rice 
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped, plus extra, if desired

COOKING 

1. Heat margarine in a large saucepan and add fennel and leek. Cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes or until leek and fennel have softened but are not burnt. 

2. Add rice and stir ingredients to combine. Pour vegetable stock and wine into the pan. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, adding artichoke pieces. Cook for 20 minutes or until rice is absorbed and no liquid remains. Remove heat and place risotto in a large serving bowl. 

3. Meanwhile, heat a small frying pan over low to medium heat. Add lemon juice and parsley to the pan and stir frequently until warmed. Remove from heat and drizzle over the top of the risotto. Serve with extra fresh parsley, if desired. 

Serves / 6

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30 minutes 

GLUTEN-FREE PIZZA

Before I became dairy-free, I thought that a pizza was simply not a pizza without cheese. In fact, pizza was one of the many foods that I thought I would have to cease eating earlier this year. Now I haven’t eaten fast-food pizza for years; I’m referring to delicious homemade pizza, without bucket loads of oil and flour in them. With a few busy nights last week, I was at a loss for what to make for dinner. My gorgeous mother had stocked my pantry with potatoes and gluten-free pizza bases just that morning (I love living close to her), hence came my idea for Potato & Rosemary pizza. The Antipasto pizza is similar to my past homemade pizza creations. Without tooting my own horn at all, I think these pizza’s tasted better without cheese. If you are dairy-free and can’t live without cheese on pizza, try grating some hard goat’s cheese on the pizza or some goat’s or sheep’s feta. Unfortunately the images are not my own as my pizza photos are having a hard time loading but they will be up soon. 

Potato, Rosemary & Garlic Pizza

Image by http://www.cooktj.com/files/node_images/144/potato%20pizza.JPG

INGREDIENTS

• 1 gluten-free pizza base (Old Time Bakery does a great GF base)
• 2 medium potatoes, washed, peeled & cut into thin slices
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary 
• sea salt & black pepper

COOKING 

1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 200 degrees celsius. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. 

2. Heat the potato slices in a microwave for 7 minutes, making sure to cover the slices with glad wrap. 

3. Spread the minced garlic on the pizza base, then add the potato, covering the base. Sprinkle the rosemary, sea salt & pepper on top. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the base and the potato are slightly golden. 

Image by https://www.organicbuyersgroup.com.au/shop/images/OTB_Gluten_Free_Pizza_Bases.jpg

Antipasto Pizza

INGREDIENTS

• 1 gluten-free pizza base (Old Time Bakery does a great GF base)
• 200g artichokes (from a tin works best), drained well & cut 
• 1 teaspoon pine nuts
• 1/2 a small red onion, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried mixed herbs
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

COOKING 

1. 1. Preheat a fan-forced oven to 200 degrees celsius. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. 

2. Spread tomato paste evenly over the pizza. Add the cut artichokes, red onion and pine nuts. Sprinkle the mixed herbs over the pizza. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the pizza base and pine nuts are slightly golden. 

Serves / 4 (both pizzas) 

Total Preparation time / 8 minutes Antipasto Pizza / 15 minutes Potato Pizza 

Total Cooking time / 10-12 minutes 

x E

ARTICHOKE & FETA FRITTATA

The inspiration for this frittata came from none other than Gwyneth Paltrow, the actress and founder of GOOP.com as well as the author of some scrumptious cookbooks. Say what you will about Gwyneth but this woman clearly knows how to cook a delicious frittata. Whilst it’s not my style to regurgitate recipes exactly as I find them, I did follow Gwyneth’s stern rule to stick the frittata in the oven for exactly 8 minutes. This has given me a whole new perspective on frittata’s, as I realized that I have been overcooking them for months! No matter what unique ingredients you put in your frittata at home, follow Gwyneth’s cooking instructions and you cannot go wrong. To give you some idea, I also like using other vegetables & herbs in my frittatas including silverbeet, leek, tomato, broccoli, different types of potato, rosemary, thyme, basil etc. Frittatas are my go to dish when I get home late at night from work, as they are a low carbohydrate dream! I make this recipe with and without chicken and it is filling either way. 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon rice bran oil / coconut oil 
• Optional- 250g chicken breast, cut into small 3cm pieces
• 1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup mixture of fresh chives and shallots (green onion), finely chopped, plus extra, to serve 
• 1 x 400g tinned artichokes, rinsed, drained & roughly chopped
• 1 large handful baby spinach, washed
• 7 eggs, preferably free range
• 3/4 cup milk of choice (unsweetened almond, oat, full cream)
• 50g reduced-fat feta, crumbled or cut into small pieces

COOKING 

1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees celsius fan-forced. 

2. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until all pieces have just turned white. Remove from the heat. 

3. Add the garlic, shallots, chives, artichokes and baby spinach to the now empty pan. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often so that the ingredients do not brown. 

3. Meanwhile, whisk the 7 eggs, milk and 1/2 cup water together in a large bowl or large jug (a large jug works very well). Pour this egg and milk mixture over the pan ingredients. Let it cook, covered, for around 5 minutes, or until the edges of the frittata are set but the middle is still runny. 

4. Scatter the feta cheese evenly on the top of the frittata and place in the pre-heated oven, covered, for exactly 8 minutes; this is all the time that the frittata needs to set perfectly. Remove from the oven and scatter with extra herbs, if desired. Serve warm, accompanied with a salad. 

Serves / 4 
Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 
Total Cooking time / 20 minutes 

x Emily