THYME TURKEY with ROAST PUMPKIN

I love cooking with turkey as I actually like the taste more than chicken. I found a wonderful butcher at Greenslopes- Rock N Roll Butcher- that sells turkey steaks at a very reasonable price. This meal was created as I was walking my big kelpie; I tend to get my best cooking ideas when I am walking him, so we walk together everyday! 

Ingredients

• baking paper 
• 450g turkey steak, fat removed and cut into even pieces
• 1 heaped tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1 heaped tablespoon lemon thyme or thyme leaves, fresh or dried, stems discarded 
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil 
• 400g pumpkin, deseeded, peeled and chopped into even 3cm pieces
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• a generous pinch of ground black pepper
• 1/2 a leek, white part only, finely chopped
• 4 handfuls of mixed lettuce, washed and roughly torn/chopped 

Cooking 

1. Preheat a fan forced oven to 220 degrees celsius. Line a medium to large baking tray with baking paper. 

2. Combine the turkey, mustard, thyme, vinegar and 1 teaspoon oil in a medium bowl, stirring well. Refrigerate for 10 minutes. 

3. Once the turkey is marinating, toss 1 teaspoon oil, pumpkin pieces, maple syrup and pepper in a medium bowl. Place in a single layer on the prepared baking tray and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender and / or just starting to become golden. 

4. Once the turkey had marinated for 8 minutes, heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil in a medium frypan over medium-low heat and swirl to coat the pan. Add the leek and cook for 2 minutes or until fragrant and just starting to become golden. Remove from heat and add the turkey to the pan, keeping the heat over medium-low. Cook the turkey for 4 minutes, stirring often, then turn off the heat, cover the pan and leave the turkey to sit in the pan for 5 minutes. After this time pick the biggest few pieces of turkey and cut them in half, checking that the turkey is white and no longer pink. If it is still slightly pink, cook for another minute. 

5. Toss the cooked turkey, leek, pumpkin and lettuce in a large serving bowl. Serve with extra thyme leaves, if desired. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation & Cooking time / around 40 minutes 

x Emily 

VEGETARIAN ANTIPASTO PIZZA

A dairy-free, gluten-free, vegetarian, antipasto and health-conscious pizza for your viewing pleasure! Perhaps not for everyone out there, but it worked for me on a dreary Monday lunchtime. If you have never tried goat’s cheese before, break away from traditional pizza cheese and branch out. There is a multitude of vegetables you can add, such as olives, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes and/or capsicum. 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 gluten-free pizza bases
• 1/4 bunch basil leaves, washed & drained
• 30g goat's cheese, crumbled 
• 1 medium to large tomato, finely sliced
• 200g eggplant, cut into 3-4cm cubes
• 1/4 red onion, sliced into thin wedges 
• 1/2 cup tomato paste

COOKING 

1. Heat a fan-forced oven to 180 degrees celsius. Line 2 large baking trays with baking paper. 

2. Bring a small saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add eggplant cubes and cook for 3-4 minutes, then drain well and rinse with cold water. Pat dry with a tea towel or paper towel and season with sea salt. Set aside.

3. Meanwhile, spread 1/4 cup tomato paste evenly over each pizza base. Place basil leaves on top of the tomato paste, covering the pizza base. Sprinkle eggplant, red onion and goat's cheese on the pizza and bake in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes or until pizza bases are golden. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30 minutes 

x E

SIX VEGETABLE & CASHEW PAD THAI

What I love about Pad Thai is how many different ways there are to create it. You can go vegetarian and use tofu, egg and capsicum. One can fry up chicken or pork and add it to a Pad Thai overflowing with crushed peanuts and sprinkled with palm sugar. This dish can even be transformed to suit a strict vegan. It seems like whatever spin one puts on Pad Thai, they can’t go wrong with this iconic dish.

Personally, I like a little chicken for protein and a whole lot of vegetables, hence the name of the recipe. Not being a big fan of peanuts, I decided roughly chopped cashews would suit better as a topping. Get imaginative and create your very own Pad Thai! 

INGREDIENTS

Pad Thai 

• 400g chicken breast fillets, cut into even 4cm pieces
• 200g bean sprouts
• 2 cups red cabbage, finely chopped
• 1 broccoli head, cut into even sized florets
• 2 green onions, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, cut into matchsticks
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 200g flat rice-stick noodles 
• 2 tablespoons fried shallots
• a scant handful of unsalted cashews, roughly chopped 

Sauce

• 1/8 cup gluten-free sweet chilli sauce
• 1/8 cup gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
• 4 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes

COOKING 

1. Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Add rice noodles and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4-5 minutes or until noodles are tender but not mushy. Drain well with cold water and set aside. 

2. Meanwhile, make the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisking well to combine. Set aside. 

3. Heat the garlic & 1 teaspoon sesame oil in a large wok over medium heat. Add chicken pieces and cook, stirring frequently, for 5-6 minutes or until chicken is white in colour and no pink flesh remains. Remove chicken from heat and keep warm. 

4. Add the rest of the sesame oil (1 teaspoon) to the wok and pour in carrot pieces and broccoli florets. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4 minutes or until vegetables are slightly tender. Add the cabbage, bean sprouts and green onions and cook for a further 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add the cooked noodles and the sauce to the wok, stirring until well combined. Remove from heat and place in a large serving bowl. 

Serve warm with fried shallots and cashew pieces sprinkled on top if you wish. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30 minutes 

x E

BAHN XEO - VIETNAMESE PANCAKE

This Vietnamese Pancake stands out for me, as it is one of the most creative and mind-blowing dishes I have ever made. This Banh Xeo is also the most colourful dish I have ever prepared, as you can see by the vibrant hues in the photo above.  Whilst you would think that the preparation and cooking would be quite arduous, it was actually surprisingly fun, as you knew that the end result would be unlike anything else you had created. Traditionally, these pancakes are served with fatty pork and prawns as a filling, however I omitted the pork, not being a raving fan of this meat myself. You can make a vegetarian version of the dish by simply removing the prawns from the ingredient list. Thanks to chef Yotam Ottolenghi for this imaginative and inspiring recipe! 

INGREDIENTS

Pancakes

• 200g rice flour
• 1 egg, preferably free range
• 400ml light coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• sesame oil
• Optional - water & sea salt 

Sauce 

• 1/8 teaspoon chilli flakes
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce or tamari sauce

Filling

• 2 medium carrots, peeled & cut into matchsticks (small, thin pieces)
• 1 medium lebanese cucumber, cut into matchsticks
• 3 spring onions, cut into small pieces on an angle
• 1 cup red cabbage, finely shredded
• 200g bean sprouts
• 2 tablespoons fresh coriander or fresh mint, finely chopped
• 200g cooked & defined prawns, with tails removed (marinated with 1 finely chopped garlic clove & 1 teaspoon sesame oil)

COOKING 

1. To make the pancake batter, combine the rice flour, egg, turmeric and a pinch of sea salt in a large bowl. Gradually add the coconut milk, whisking well so no lumps of flour exist. We are aiming for a very thin, runny batter, therefore slowly add water if all the coconut milk has been used and the batter is not at this consistency (you may find that the batter will thicken slightly through the preparation stages, therefore you may need to add more water right before step 3). Set aside. 

2. To make the sauce, whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Add more chilli if you like or remove completely if you do not like any spice. 

3. Before making the pancakes, check if you need to add any more liquid to the batter (refer to step 1). Heat a small amount of sesame oil over medium heat in a non-stick frying pan of around 20-22cm in diameter. Pour in one-quarter of the batter and swirl around the pan so that the consistency between the edges and the centre of the pancake are as even as can be. Once a substantial amount of air bubbles have appeared on the surface of the batter (this will take around 2 minutes of cooking time) very gently flip the pancake over and cook the other side for 2 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the pan and cover the pancake to keep warm as you repeat this process with the remaining batter to make four pancakes in total. 

4. Meanwhile, using a small frying pan over medium heat, add the prawns and the marinade and cook for 4 minutes or until prawns are pink in colour. Remove from heat and set aside. 

5. Place a warm pancake on each serving plate and place the filling you desire (carrot, cucumber, red cabbage, spring onions, bean sprouts, herbs and/or prawns) in the middle of the pancake, leaving some space on the edges of the pancake. Drizzle with sauce and fold the edges of the pancake over so you can pick it up. Serve with remaining sauce on the side to use as a dipping sauce for the pancake. 

Serves / 2 as a main meal or 4 as a light meal

Total Preparation time / 20 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 25 minutes 

x E

CHICKPEA, PUMPKIN & BEETROOT SUPER SALAD

This has to be one of the most colourful salads I have ever had the pleasure of making (and eating!). I was inspired to pair the three key ingredients- beetroot, pumpkin and chickpeas, after reading a similar recipe in the September edition of ‘Recipes’. Recently I have become fanatical about adding sunflower seeds and/or pepitas (pumpkin seeds) to every salad I make, due to their extensive health benefits. If time is not on your side, you can use canned beetroot, but remember that lots of sugar is added to preserve it. Cheese such as goats, ricotta, feta or shaved parmesan can be sprinkled over the salad for more flavour (and a few more calories). Sweet potato can be substituted for pumpkin, as can lentils or cannellini beans for chickpeas. Such a versatile, vivid salad to play with!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 small raw beetroot, peeled & sliced or 200g canned beetroot, drained & sliced 
• 300g pumpkin, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon honey 
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 x 400g tin of chickpeas, washed & drained 
• 100g baby spinach leaves, washed 
• 1/2 a small red onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 
• a handful of sunflower seeds/kernels
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

COOKING 

1. Preheat fan-forced oven to 180 degrees celsius. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. If cooking beetroot, place on the prepared tray and drizzle with half of the oil. Bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the pumpkin pieces and honey. Place the honey pumpkin on the same tray and bake for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender. (If only cooking the pumpkin, bake for 20 minutes only). 

2. Meanwhile, heat the rest of the oil in a small fry pan over medium heat. Add red onion and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes or until onion is soft. Remove from heat to cool. 

3. Place chickpeas, baby spinach, red onion, garlic, sunflower seeds, and both vinegars in a large serving bowl. Toss to combine. Add cooked or canned beetroot and pumpkin and gently toss. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 15 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 30 - 40 minutes 

x E