BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE

Place all the ingredients listed in a high speed blender
35gm of spinach leaves
1 banana
1 passionfruit
1 cinnamon stick crumbled
1 tsp of chia seeds
2 and 1/2 tbs of coconut yoghurt
2 tsp of rice malt syrup
70gm of ice cubes
60ml of water
Blend until completely smooth
Pour into a glass and enjoy ...

 

PECAN - PINEAPPLE BITES

Arrange 30 mini paper cases on an oven tray.
In a medium bowl , combine 125gm of ground pecans
45 gm of melted butter
55gm of sugar
Mix these together thoroughly .
Spoon this mix evenly between the mini cases , press the mix down with your finger or spoon .
Refrigerate  for 30 minutes .
In another bowl , combine 230gm of drained crushed pineapple with 225gm of cream cheese ( room temp )
Stir until well combined .
Remove the chilled bases from the fridge, remove the paper cases and spoon the pineapple cream cheese mix over the top of the bases .
Slice 15 pecans in half and place 1 pecan half on top of each .
Place back on tray and chill for a further 30 minutes .
These are very small bites and elegant enough to serve to company .

 

CARAMELISED ONION , FIG AND GORGONZOLA PIZZA

PIZZA DOUGH
Preheat oven to 200deg C
Place 1 and 1/2 cups of  shredded mozzarella in a medium bowl with 2 tbs of cream cheese ( room temp ) and microwave for 1 minute , then stir and microwave for 30 seconds .
Stir in 3/4 cup of almond flour and add 1 egg ( lightly beaten )
Wet your hands and spread over a pizza pan sprayed and lined with baking paper .
Dock the dough all over .
Sprinkle with garlic salt .
Place in preheated oven , after 8 minutes prick any large air bubbles and continue cooking for 6 minutes or until slightly
browned on top .

PIZZA TOPPING
Heat 2 tbs of butter in a deep frypan over med heat
Thinly slice a large onion and add to the pan , cook for 10 minutes
Reduce heat and add 1 tbs of soft brown sugar , continue to cook until the onions turn brown in colour .
Remove from heat and add a splash of balsamic vinegar , season with salt and pepper .
Brush pizza base with a mixture of olive oil , rosemary sprig and tsp of minced garlic .
Top with caramelised onions , 1 fig sliced into 6 wedges , and small chunks of gorgonzola cheese , evenly over the pizza base .
If figs are unavailable you can replace them with wedges of fresh pear .
Place pizza in the preheated oven until the cheese melts ..
Remove and top with rocket leaves and grated parmesan cheese .

TUESDAY COOKING CLASS ....A PASTA CLASS

Back to basics , a simple pasta served with a lemon herb sauce .....and a chicken ,spinach , ricotta and cashew nut ravioli .

SIMPLE PASTA
Sift together 375 gm of all purpose flour together with a 1/2 tsp salt ./ G.F:Use Rice flour with xanthum gum or physllium husk .
Make a well in the centre
Place 4  lightly beaten eggs in the centre of the mound
Use your fingertips to gradually draw in the egg mix from the centre of the mound ...until a dough forms .
The dough will start off sticky ...just keep working it ..till your fingers and work surface  are clean .
Now it`s time to knead
Knead the  dough with the heal of your hand ...pushing away from you ...continue to knead for 5-6 minutes until smooth and elastic . ( this action develops the gluten or if you are gluten free the thickener )
Your dough should be silky and smooth
Divide your dough into 4 portions , wrap each portion individually in cling wrap...set a side .
Make your ravioli filling ......
Mix together 160gm of wilted spinach
250 gm of ricotta cheese
50 gm of grated parmesan cheese
30 gm of chopped cashews
Ground nutmeg to taste
150gm of finely chopped cooked chicken .
Set aside ....
I bought the original pasta machines to class ....( I have an electric pasta machine that mixes and extrudes the pasta required , it`s fine if you have no time , but rolling out your own pasta by hand is something very special .)

So roll out the hand flattened portions starting at the highest settings repeating the roll out process 3 times at each setting till you get to number 2
For ravioli lay out the rolled sheets of pasta and cut out the required circles /squares ...
Laying a tsp full of the filling on one circle/ square  and brushing the sides with a whisked egg white and then top with another circle /square and join the two pasta sheets with an indent of a fork

Bring a pot of water to the boil , place the ravioli in the boiling water in batches
Let the pasta cook through allowing it to come to the surface .
Serve with a drizzle of oil and freshly torn basil and parsley and a sprinkle of finely grated parmesan

 

BANANA AND PEANUT BUTTER SNACKS

All you need is 1 banana sliced into even rounds  (6)
 Smooth peanut butter on  half the rounds  ( 3 )
Join the rounds together and serve .

 

Commonly known as nuts , peanuts are the seeds of a leguminous plant related to peas , beans and lentils .

Peanut butter contains more unsaturated fats than saturated fats , offering a great source of "healthy fats ".

A healthy body needs a good supply of healthy fats like olive oil and avocado , peanut butter is a healthy fat food .

BACON AND GREEN TEA BROTH WITH CHIA CRUSTED SALMON .

Place 400gm of bacon pieces into a large pan over a low heat and cook until crispy .
Add 1 small red onion quartered , 3 spring onions ( white section only ) and continue to cook until the onion softens .
Now add 2 litres of unsweetened green tea  ( unstrained )
3 nori sheets crushed
Simmer over a low heat for 30 minutes .
Strain and discard solids
Add 1 dsp of mirin .
Cover with a lid and set aside

In a wide bowl mix together  2 tbs of chia seeds with 2 tbs of white sesame seeds
Dip 4 fillets of salmon skin side down into 1 egg lightly whisked .
Then dip the skin side of the salmon into the seed mix to coat .
Heat a fry pan lightly sprayed with coconut cooking oil over a med heat
Add salmon skin side down and cook for 4 minutes , turn then cook for a further 4 minutes .
To serve place a salmon fillet in serving bowls and pour broth evenly between bowls ( just enough to cover the sides of the fillet ).
Top with sliced spring onion and steamed broad beans .