Garlic, Herb and Olive Potato Salad

This is a nice side dish to any main meal. It contains no animal product so its great for vegetarians and vegans!

Ingredients: 

- 1330 grams white potatoes - (or about small white 16 potatoes)
- 3 tsp chicken salt, vegan friendly, MSG free
- 1 heaped tablespoon fresh chopped chives
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon fresh finely chopped basil leaves
- small handful of fresh watercress leaves, stems removed
- 12 green olives, the kind found in deli's that are kept in olive oil or brine, must have their stones still
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- some whole cracked pepper
- 2 large garlic cloves, crushed

Utensils:
- Fry Pan
- Pot to boil potatoes
- chopping board
- large enough bowl to toss all ingredients in
- spoons to toss ingredients

Wash and chop your potatoes into quarters, add to pot of good water with 1 teaspoon of your chicken salt, bring to the boil and cook until potatoes are just tender enough to put your fork into without them being hard.

Once cooked drain water and put your potatoes into a bowl that will be big enough to toss everything in.
Then pull out your fry pan, in it add your 12 green olives and begin to toast them on a medium heat. Once this is done, take them off, let them cool and then begin to cut the flesh off the stone and add that to your potatoes. Do not toss your potatoes until the end, as they will begin to break down if you mix them to much.

With the same pan add your two garlic cloves that have been crushed with 1 tablespoon of your olive oil and cook the garlic until it is just golden brown. Once this is done add it to your potatoes with your herbs and 2 teaspoons of your chicken salt, 5 tablespoons of olive oil and as much cracked pepper as you like.

This is best when left overnight to develop in flavour.

Enjoy !

Allspice Pumpkin Soup

This is a lovely healthy pumpkin soup recipe. Add some brown rice to it and it gets very filling very quick.

Ingredients:

- 1kg pumpkin
- 2 tablespoons organic pumpkin seed oil
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice
- 1 cube beef stock or beef flavoured stock ( you can get these vegan friendly)
- 1 tablespoon rice bran oil
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked pepper

Method: 

Boil kettle with at least 3 cups of water. In a medium pot, add chopped onion and sauté until brown and caramelised in rice bran oil. Turn off once done. Once kettle has boiled add 2 cups of water to your beef stock cube. Stir until dissolved. Add chopped pumpkin to onion and add stock, then add more water until covered over pumpkin. Cover with a lid and cook until pumpkin is falling away from skin and can be mashed with spoon in pot.

Turn off and let cool for about 5 minutes. Then add to blender with 2 tablespoons organic pumpkin seed oil, ground paprika, ground all spice and mixed spice. Blend together until completely smooth.

Add to bowls with some brown rice if desired, enjoy.

LEMON CAKE!

This is one of my favourite cakes to make. I used the basic recipe I found for a Lemon Tea Cake in an old recipe book. The book was called 'Wonderful ways to prepare Cakes and sweets' -  by Ayers and James, and is still one of my favourite books to go to for a cake recipe.

However the original recipe was not lemony enough, and was a lot more moist in a way that didn't give it the best texture for that kind of cake.

The only way to describe this cake is pure lemony joy. If your a fan of lemon curd, lemon tarts and lemon meringue, then you'll LOVE this.

Please note that although the cake itself has no dairy, there is butter in the icing sugar. There are plenty of dairy free icing recipes you could use, as long as you add the lemon juice. You could use non stick baking paper to line the tin too!

Ingredients:

- 3 eggs
- 1 cup raw sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 5 small good lemons, make sure they are juicy when you squeeze them and have a good yellow rind and  
   not too much pith.
- 1 1/2 cup of flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- Tablespoon of butter
- 500g Icing Sugar

Utensils: 

- fine grater
- electric beaters
- cake tin
- oven set at 180'C Fan Forced

Method:

Cake:
Take your 5 lemons, wash them and chop of the end and the tops, this make it easier to grate.
Grate your lemons, making sure you get all that good yellow rind, but be careful to not grate for too long in one spot, or you will start grating white pith. Once you have done this set aside your lemon rind. Begin squeezing the juice of 4 of your lemons and set aside another lemon as you will need the juice later to make the icing sugar. Set aside the juice of your 4 lemons, making sure there are no seeds and pulp.

In a mixing bowl big enough for your cake batter, take your eggs and beat them until properly combined and thick. Add the sugar gradually. Now sift your flour and baking soda over your lemon egg mixture and mix together. Butter and flour a non stick cake tin and pour in your batter.

Place in the oven until cake has risen and is golden brown, you should also be able to stick in a skewer and not have batter on the end. Once this is done take out of the oven and let cool for about 20 minutes, then turn upside down to release from tin. Let cool on  a wire rack, then turn it back over so the flat side is on the bottom.

Icing: 
Take the lemon you put aside and squeeze the juice from it. In bowl add your butter and lemon juice,then slowly start adding the icing sugar a few tablespoons at a time and mix until there are no lumps. You may not have to use all your icing sugar, you may have to use a little more. It all depends on how much juice is in your lemon, but you basically want a nice smooth consistency that isn't going to drip and run of your cake.

Once you have this with no lumps, and your cake is fully cooled, ice your cake.

This cake is best left out for the first 48 hours NOT in the fridge, as it may be to moist. Make sure you cover it in foil though.

Yum Yum !

Seasoned Potato Chips

Sometimes, you just need a good ol' bowl of seasoned potato chips, here is my recipe!

Ingredients:

- 6 large white potatoes,
- 2 tablespoons water
- 3 tablespoons rice bran oil
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon tumeric
- 1 tablespoon dried crushed onion
- 1 teaspoon Herbamare original salt

Utensils: 

- Foil
- Oven proof dish used for roasting.
- Oven set at 180'C Fan Forced temperature

Method:

Chop potatoes into chip size lengths, keep the skin on, as this helps make them crispy (and is also better for you). Place into an oven proof dish, the kind that is used for your roasts. Add the water and mix all over your chips, making sure they are evenly coated, then add your rice bran oil and mix that so it is evenly coated all over your chips. Place foil over your tray and place into oven for 30 min.

In another bowl, add your dried onion, tumeric, smoked paprika and salt. Mix together evenly.  Set aside.

After 30 min take out your chips, remove foil and using a spatula, turn the chips over and loosen from tray and mix evenly in juices. Take all of your seasoning and sprinkle over the top of your chips and VERY gently toss until evenly coated all over your chips. Place back into the oven without the foil until golden brown and crispy.

Enjoy xoxo Jane 

Wholemeal bacon, herb and tomato pasta

This pasta is a nice light basic dish. It has a subtle flavour of herbs, bacon and tomato and uses my new favourite spice- smoked paprika, which gives it a wonderful subtle smoky flavour with the bacon.

The amount of herbs I use is a guide, feel free to add more if you like.

Ingredients:

- 4 Bay Leaves
- Pink Murray River Salt flakes
- 2 1/2  tablespoons dried onion
- 8 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
- Palm full of fresh oregano, roughly chopped with any woody stems removed.
- Medium bunch of chives, chopped
- 450g Cherry Tomatoes
- 8 rashers of bacon, preferably frozen
- smoked paprika
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil, you will need a total of about 9 tablespoons
- 1/2 teaspoon Hot English mustard
- 2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
- Herbamare Vegetable Health salt
- 300g wholemeal pasta

Method:

In a pot add enough water to cook pasta with 4 bay leaves, and a large pinch of salt flakes, bring to the boil.

While you are waiting for the water to boil to add your pasta, get a large mixing bowl and add 1 tablespoon of dried and shredded onion, the chopped basil leaves, chopped oregano and chopped chives.

At this point your water should be boiling, so add the pasta to cook. Once the pasta is cooked to your liking, drain and add ( including the bay leaves) to your herb mixture and mix to coat herbs evenly over pasta.

Take your 450g of cherry tomatoes and divide them in half. Take one half of your tomes set aside and cut each tomato in half and add to you herbs in the bowl. take the other cherry tomatoes you set aside and puncture them with a knife (so the juices leach out when cooking) then add them to a fry pan, preferably non stick. Take your 8 rashers of frozen bacon ( they can be a little thawed at this point ) and dice them.
Add to the pan with the tomatoes and start to cook, the juice form the tomatoes and frozen bacon should be enough to cook them in so you will not need oil.

Once bacon is starting to cook add 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika and stir until paprika is mixed evenly and the bacon and tomato turn a beautiful red colour. Then add 1 tablespoon dried onion to the pan and cook for one more minute or so. Once this is done, take off heat and add to pasta dish with 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon hot English mustard, 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese and 4 pinches of Herbamare vegetable salt. Stir, then let sit in the fridge overnight for flavours to develop.

The next day take out of fridge and stir so that the juices that have collected at the bottom coat the pasta evenly, then add 1/2 tablespoon dried onion, 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, 2 pinches of Herbamare salt and 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Mix together and enjoy.

Enjoy

NEW RECIPES COMING TODAY AND THIS WEEK!

Some great recipes coming today and this weekend, including A delicious Bacon, Tomato and Herb wholemeal pasta, my favourite lemon tea cake recipe and a Dark Chocolate Vienna.