Eggplant, olive and feta patties

Olive oil cooking spray
1 large eggplant, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups pitted kalamata olives, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups fresh white breadcrumbs
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
100g feta cheese, crumbled
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1 long red chilli, finely chopped
1/4 cup plain flour
Vegetable oil, to shallow-fry
Rocket and lemon wedges, to serve

Spray a frying pan with oil. Heat over high heat. Cook eggplant, in batches, for 2 minutes each side or until golden. Cool. Finely chop.

Place eggplant in a bowl. Add olives, breadcrumbs, parmesan, feta, egg, basil and chilli. Using ¼ cup mixture per patty, shape into 12 patties. Dip 1 patty in flour. Place on a baking tray. Repeat with remaining patties.

 

Heat oil in large frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook patties for 2 to 3 minutes each side or until golden and crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel. Serve with rocket and lemon wedges.

White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies

White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies

113g butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tbsp brandy/rum/vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and brandy. Combine the flour and baking soda; stir into the sugar mixture. Mix in the white chocolate chips and cranberries. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. For best results, take them out while they are still doughy. Allow cookies to cool for 1 minute on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Zucchini, Ricotta and Lentil Lasagne

Zucchini, Ricotta and Lentil Lasagne

Olive oil spray
1 brown onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled, finely chopped
2 celery sticks, trimmed, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbs no-added-salt tomato paste
400g can no-added-salt chopped tomatoes
400g can no-added-salt brown lentils, rinsed, drained
400g low-fat ricotta
125ml (1/2 cup) skim milk
1 egg, lightly whisked
3 fresh lasagne sheets
2 large zucchini, trimmed, thinly sliced lengthways
2 tbs finely grated parmesan

Heat a saucepan over medium-low heat. Spray with oil. Cook the onion, carrot and celery, stirring occasionally, for 6 minutes or until soft. Add garlic. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

 

Add the tomato paste. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the tomato and lentils. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until mixture thickens. Set aside to cool slightly.

 

Preheat oven to 180ºC. Spray a 2L (8-cup) capacity baking dish with oil. Combine the ricotta, milk and egg in a bowl.

 

Place 80ml (1/3 cup) of lentil mixture in the dish. Top with 1 lasagne sheet, half the remaining lentil mixture, half the zucchini and one-third of the ricotta mixture. Continue layering with another lasagne sheet, remaining lentil mixture, remaining zucchini and half the remaining ricotta mixture. Top with the remaining lasagne sheet and ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes.

Cherry tomato and rocket tartlets

Cherry tomato and rocket tartlets

Frozen shortcrust pastry, thawed
1 cup fresh ricotta
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan
100g cherry tomatoes, halved
Rocket and oil, to serve


Preheat oven to 200°c. Line four 12cm (base measurement) fluted tart tins, with removable bases, with pastry and trim excess. Line with non-stick baking paper and fill with pastry weights or rice. Bake for 8 minutes then remove weights or rice and paper. Bake for 5 minutes or until light golden. combine ricotta, basil and parmesan in a bowl. Divide among cases and top with cherry tomatoes. Drizzle with oil and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Top with rocket and drizzle with more oil.

Banana Bread

Banana Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted, plus more as needed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature and lightly beaten
1 cup mashed very ripe banana (from about 3 medium bananas)
1/3 cup hot water

Heat the oven to 160°C and arrange a rack in the middle. Coat a metal loaf pan with butter; set aside.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and chopped nuts in a medium bowl; set aside.

Whisk together the measured butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add the eggs and banana and whisk until smooth.

Add half of the flour mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. Add half of the water and stir until just combined. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and water, stirring until just combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top. Bake until the bread begins to pull away from the sides of the pan and a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour to 70 minutes. Remove the pan to a wire rack and let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then turn the bread out onto the rack to cool completely.

Jerk sweet potatoes

Jerk sweet potatoes

2 sweet potatoes
1 red onion
1 red chilli, deseeded
a handful of cherry tomatoes
2 tbsp sugar
generous pinch of allspice
1 lemon
a large knob of butter (40g)
1 lime
1 star anise
a small knob of ginger, grated
a small handful of parsley, chopped

Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Prick the potatoes all over and place directly on the oven shelf and bake for 45 minutes. Peel and dice the red onion and chop the chilli.
Chuck the onion, chilli, tomatoes, sugar, allspice and oil into a pan. Fry for a few minutes. Zest and juice the lemon into the pan.
Boil the tomato mixture then turn down to a medium heat and bubble until the tomatoes have almost broken down to a mush. Add the butter to another pan along with the zest of the lime, star anise and grated ginger.Melt the butter over a low heat, then remove the star anise.
Remove the potatoes once cooked, slice down the length but not right to the ends and push in the sides so that the opening becomes wider.
Fluff up the potato a little with a fork then pour over a little butter. Mash some more before adding the piquant tomatoes. Scatter over some parsley and serve with extra butter.

Winter Veggie Bake

Winter Veggie Bake


1 mug of long grain rice
1 butternut squash
glug of olive oil
sprig of fresh rosemary
sprig of fresh thyme
1 large courgette
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 eggs
chunk of hard Italian cheese, grated
handful of pine nuts

Preheat the oven to 200°C and bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Tip the rice into the water and cook for 10 minutes until plump and cooked, as per packet instructions.
Strip the leaves from the rosemary and thyme and finely chop. Peel, deseed and dice the squash into thumb-nail sized pieces and bung into a roasting tray with a splash of olive oil, salt, pepper and the chopped herbs. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes.
Slice the courgette into rounds as thick as your finger and toss in a little salt, pepper and oil in a bowl. :ay them on a baking tray so there is no overlapping and roast for 15 minutes, or char-grill them on a hot, cast iron griddle for a minute or so on either side. Peel and finely slice the onion and garlic and gently sweat off in a frying pan for 10 minutes so that they are soft and sweet. Drain the cooked rice and tip into the bowl you used to toss the courgettes in oil. Stir in the grated cheese and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Crack the eggs into the rice and mix together with the cooked onions and garlic.
Press the rice into the bottom of a baking dish, then cover in a layer of courgette slices and scatter the top with the roasted squash. Finish with a handful of pinenuts and return to the oven for 10 minutes before serving.