Category Archives: Dinner

I would like to think I should appreciate the glorious summer days in Perth. But it’s hard when it has been almost 40 degrees a few days in a row. All I want to do is having air-conditioning on, sipping on cold drinks and watching some movies at home since I’m not a beach person. When it comes to cooking, I do not want to stand in front of hot oven or stove on hot days like this >.< I had my in=laws over for dinner last night and had to come up with something easy to put together, supper healthy, impressive and packed with flavour. I’ve cooked for them a number of times, which means a menu planning is getting harder since I need to introduce new ingredients and new flavours  to them. To me, it is the exciting part of dinner parties coming up with good dishes that guests would enjoy and have good memories on.

Anyways it took me about 1 1/2 hours to prepare trio bruschettas, pumpkin and quinoa salad, balsamic braised red cabbage and orange salad, Spanish chicken and Rice pudding for dessert.

Balsamic onion jam, roast beef and blue cheese on home-made rosemary bread.
I sealed 300g of lean beef cut in hot pan for about 5 minutes, then transferred to 180 degree oven for about 30 minutes. Take it out of the oven and rest the meat for 20-30 minutes. Meat should be pink in the middle and so tender melting away in your mouth. I used onion jam that I made last week underneath and topped with slices of blue cheese. You can add horseradish cream instead which is also a great combination with roast beef, of course.

Roasted red grapes, brie cheese, walnuts and honey on bread
Sweet grapes and creamy brie cheese goes well here. Drizzle of honey really tops it off. Simply assemble roasted grapes and thyme, slices of brie cheese, toasted walnuts and honey. Easy peasy:)

Grilled mushrooms and brie cheese on bread
Earthy flavour of mushrooms and brie also creates a great combination. I drizzled truffle oil on top as well, which is quite subtle but enhances flavour even more.

Moving on to salads..

Balsamic braised red cabbage and orange salad
Braise shredded red cabbage in a splash of balsamic until it gets tender (cook less if you want more crunchy salad). Garnish with orange, basil, sunflower seeds and poppy seeds. More balsamic reduction on top if you wish!

Roasted pumpkin and quinoa salad
Mix roasted pumpkin, cooked quinoa, green salads and goji berries. Season and dress with e.v.o.o.

Hero of the table is Spanish chicken.
Cook one chopped onion and 800g chicken breast in the casserole dish until they are brown. Season with salt and pepper. Add garlic, potato, green olives, sun-dried tomatoes, preserved lemon, tomato passata and smoked paprika. Braise for about 30 minutes in low to medium heat. Garnish with chopped green spring onions.

Dessert was vanilla rice pudding with mango and toasted coconut.
Cook arborio rice in milk, sugar, vanilla extract for 20-30 minutes until rice is well done. Top with slices of mango and toasted coconut to serve.

I hope they all enjoyed it x

Our dinner last night was nice and colourful. I made meatballs on risoni for Daniel’s main and put some fermented veggies on the side. Home-made sauerkraut, Kimchi and balsamic braised onions – yum and full of probiotics!

Multi-coloured foods just don’t look pretty on the plate. They are also good for your health. Phytochemicals are substances that occur naturally in the plants and are thought to work synergistically with vitamins, minerals and fibre, boosting essential nutrients in them. Eating five servings of veggies is important, but also eating a variety of colourful foods helps to achieve optimal nutrition and promote good health.

Briefly listing different colours here…

– Red: Lycopene act as a powerful antioxidant protecting from cancer and heart disease. e.g. Tomatoes, watermelon, pink grapefruit, guava, cranberries, beets
– Orange/ Yellow: beta cryptoxanthin, beta carotene and alpha carotene can be converted to vitamin A in your body, which is important for your vision, immune system, skin and bone health. e.g. Carrots, mango, cantaloup, winter squash, sweet potato, apricot, papaya
– Green: chlorophyll in green fruit and vegetables have anti-cancer properties. They are also an excellent source of vitamin K, folic acid, potassium, carotenoid, and omega-3 fatty acid. e.g. Brocolli, cabbage, bok choy, Brussels sprouts, kiwi fruit, celery, kale
– Blue/ Purple: anthocyanin content in these coloured foods is antioxidants and helps to keep your heart and blood pressure healthy. e.g. Eggplant, prunes, plums, blueberries, blackberries, pomegranates
– White: alicin in white foods promotes heart health and reduce heart disease. e.g. Cauliflower, onion, banana, potato, parsnips, garlic, ,mushrooms

So overall, the more colours you eat, the better your health gets. I know it is hard if you are not used to eating fresh whole foods or have a hectic lifestyle with no time to prepare your meals. But it is totally worth spending a bit of more time and effort on changing your diet step by step because it will totally change your energy level and overall health.

My tips are…

– Plan ahead
– Try new/ unfamiliar foods rather than getting stuck with one type of food
– Take notice of colours when grocery shopping
– Swap something out for another colour such as strawberries to oranges
– Make small changes in your food habits – more plant foods means more colours!
– Be creative and have fun when preparing your food

I hope it helps x

Making healthy dinner doesn’t take much time at all. I guess all you need to do is to get organised what to cook and what ingredients you need or you have in your fridge. When I was working full-time, it was hard doing meal plans, grocery shopping and finding an energy to cook at the end of the day. I think if you plan ahead on the weekend and even freeze some pre-made meals, it will save so much time as well as stay healthy.

The beauty of making this meal is its simplicity, but at the same time looks elegant. Mediterranean inspired salsa is made with tomato, basil, green olives and capsicum pesto. I flattened and pan-fried chicken breast with Moroccan spice, and added green salad on the side. Chocolate pudding for dessert (didn’t have enough chocolate already!).