Warm Lentil Salad

\ Leave a Comment \ by

warm lentil salad
Here is a perfect heart-warming salad. I make a lot of salads throughout the year, but this one is on top of my list when I get cravings for something hearty and flavoursome. I can make a big batch and happily eat every single day. Roasting vegetables is so easy and healthy way of cooking. All you need to do is wash, chop, dress and place vegetables in the oven. My favorites are roasted carrots, pumpkin, parsnip, beetroot and cauliflower. To keep the ingredients fresh, I rely on cold storage solutions that ensure everything is at its best before cooking. The oven does all the hard work for you so that you can enjoy a glass of wine while dinner is getting ready. Caramelised sweet vegetables smell and taste amazing. This salad is not only a great accompaniment to a roast or grilled meat but also is good enough for main on its own. Feel free to double up the recipe for a work lunch or potluck party.

Ingredients (serves 2)

a bunch of baby carrots
1 cup of diced pumpkin
1 cup of French lentils, soaked at least 1 hour
water or stock to cook lentils
1 cup of salad leaves
1 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Himalayan salt and pepper to taste
50g blue cheese
a drizzle of olive oil to serve

Mix melted coconut oil, cumin, thyme and cayenne pepper in a large bowl. Put baby carrots and diced pumpkin into a bowl and toss well. Transfer veggies to a baking dish and place in the preheated (180) oven for 20 minutes or until cooked. In the meantime, wash and drain soaked lentils. Cover with water or stock and bring it up to boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until lentils are cooked for your liking. Take it off the heat and drain. Place roasted carrots and pumpkin and cooked lentils in a large bowl together with salad leaves. Toss to combine and add salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle a good quality of olive oil and crumble blue cheese on top. Serve warm.
warm lentil salad1

Posted in: Dinner, Gluten Free, Lunch, My recipes, salads, Vegetarian

Chicken Soup

\ Leave a Comment \ by

20160319_182340

A warm bowl of chicken soup is perfect when there is a chill in the air. Not only is it a yummy hearty dish but also a healer that boosts your immune system. Vitamin B, calcium, magnesium and zinc from stock made with chicken bones, anti-inflammatory ginger and garlic, anti-bacterial and anti-viral rosemary and nutritious vegetables in one bowl. Ultra-cleansing!

When I was sick as a child, my mum used to make me a rice porridge just like all other Koreans do because you don’t have much appetite when feeling ill and tend to crave for a simple and bland meal. I couldn’t understand why Westerners eat chicken soup instead of porridge when you catch a cold or feel sick until I actually tried it. Nutrition tick! flavour tick! feeling better tick! Amazing!

My craving has changed to a bowl of chicken soup when feeling cold now (in fact, I can have it all year around). I prefer my chicken soup to be clear and clean taste so I took the skin and fatty bits off and washed well before putting in a pot. You need to boil at least for an hour so that the stock is full of flavour and the meat falls off the bone easily. I hope everyone stays away from cold as chilly season is approaching 🙂
Ingredients (serves 4-6)

1 small chicken
2 cup of brown rice and black eyed peas (soaked overnight)
1 carrot
1 cup of chopped cabbage
1 cup of green peas
1/2 brown onion
1 large garlic
1 knob of ginger
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of rosemary
1 tbsp of peppercorns
1 small chili
rice noodles (optional)
salt to taste
coriander for garnish

Wash the chicken and remove skin and fatty bits. Place in a stock pot along with chopped onion, garlic, ginger, bay leaf, rosemary, chili and peppercorns. Cover with cold water. Bring it up to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer over low heat for an hour. Take the chicken out and pull the meat off bones. Discard bay leaf, add the meat, rice noodles and chopped vegetables into the pot. Simmer for another 15-20 minutes until veges are cooked. Adjust seasoning, ladle into bowls and garnish with coriander.
20160319_182332

Posted in: Dinner, Gluten Free, Lunch, My recipes

Parsley Coriander Pesto

\ Leave a Comment \ by

Parsley is one of the herbs I fell in love as I started cooking. When I was a child, I thought it was just a garnish on the side and not edible. I was totally wrong! It is so vibrant and delicious. Not only is the oil and aroma incredible but also it is packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Of course, fresh ones are superior in flavour and nutrition compared to the dried form. For storage, you need to wrap them in dampen paper towel and place in a plastic bag inside the fresh section of fridge. You can make salads, salsa verde, quiche, pasta, pesto, etc. So versatile, right?

This pesto is a little different to traditional pesto recipes that use basil, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts and olive oil. I added coriander leaves for more herby fragrance, tahini for creaminess and crunchy walnuts. You can use this pesto for pasta, gnocchi, marinade for fish, chicken or steak, spread on bread and dressing for roasted vegetables.

Ingredients

1 cup of parley leaves
1 cup of coriander leaves
1 heap tbsp of tahini
handful of roasted walnuts (roast natural walnuts in dry pan)
1/4 cup of olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp of minced garlic
1/2 tsp of minced ginger
salt and pepper

Rinse and roughly chop parley and coriander leaves. Place them and other ingredients in a food processor. Blend all and transfer to a sanitised jar.

For my lunch, I mixed this pesto and green peas and served on a slice of sourdough with a dollop of cottage cheese.

pesto

Posted in: Breakfast, Dinner, Gluten Free, Lunch, My recipes

Zucchini Slice

\ Leave a Comment \ by

I never get sick of baked zucchini slice. It is in fact what my regular breakfast, snack and lunch looks like. Even if the base is pretty much same, I can be creative and change the toppings and fillings depending on what I feel like to have or what I have in the fridge. I can happily have it at any time of the day either served warm or cold. It lasts well in the fridge for up to a week so you can make on the weekend and take it to work lunches. You can serve a little green salad on the side or even top with smoked salmon, sliced chicken breast or whatever protein you like.

zucchini slice

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 small zucchini grated
1 small carrot grated
1 small brown onion sliced fine
1 cup of Parmesan cheese grated
1 cup of cooked lentils
1 cup of wholemeal flour
3 eggs
50g feta cheese
1/2 tsp of chili flake
salt and pepper to taste

Heat coconut oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the zucchini, carrot and onion, season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes until lightly golden. Place in a large bowl with cooked lentils, lightly beaten eggs, flour, grated cheese and chili flake. Mix to combine and spoon the mixture into a baking dish lined with baking paper. Top with crumbled feta cheese on top and bake in the preheated oven (180) for 35-40 minutes until golden and cooked. Allow to cool before slicing.

Posted in: Baking, Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch, My recipes

Veggie Patty

\ Leave a Comment \ by

FotorCreated

Have you ever tried store bought veggie patties before? For me, what a disappointment. It was overly salty, mushy with no texture whatsoever. I think it’s always a good idea making a big batch of your own veggie patties and freeze them in individual bags. Because when you are in hurry, unfortunately you tend to grab a bag of processed looking-healthy-but-not-so-healthy foods.

This veggie patty is a mixture of grains, nuts and veggies. Yes, it’s a perfect wholefood full of flavour and texture. Soy sauce and mushroom for unami and earthy flavour, tahini and chickpeas for creaminess and nuttiness, herbs and spices for extra-nutritional boost. Oh, another plus side is that it’s an affordable budget meal. Yay! You can serve this as main (like what I did in the photo, served with green salad and a little dollop of Korean chili sauce called Gochugang) or in a bun or wrap.

Ingredients (makes 4 patties)

1 cup of cooked chickpeas
1 medium sized cooked potato
2 tbsp of rice flour (more if the mixture is too wet)
1/4 brown onion, finely chopped
½ carrot, grated
1 crushed garlic
Handful of chopped parsley
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tbsp of tahini
½ tsp of cumin seeds
½ tsp of smoked paprika
A pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
Coconut oil for cooking

Coat a frying pan with a drizzle of coconut oil and cook chopped onion and mushroom, grated carrot and crushed garlic for 3-5 minutes until cooked. Add this mixture with the rest of ingredients into a food processor and pulse until well combined (but not overdone). Add a bit more rice flour if the mixture is too wet. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Make little patties with clean hands. You can cook in a pan for 3-5 minutes each side until golden or freeze the patties in individual sandwich bags.

Posted in: Uncategorized