Tag Archives: vegetarian

Jun27

tomato pasta sauce + 10 variations to spice it up

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I made a tomato pasta sauce with well-renowned and fabulous Nina Timm at her home earlier today. What an honour and absolute delight to meet and spend a day with this amazing woman! Yip, she is the wonder behind the much followed www.my-easy-cooking.com blog. We laughed, we cooked and shared so many stories from our past and talked about the thrills of living in today…. I will be chatting to her tomorrow on her RSG radio broadcast between 9 and 10 am and share what we did today. I am so inspired and so alive … Nina I thank you for one of the best days of my life and to cooking up many more memories in the future!

Back to the sauce … I am a freakishly mad about tomatoes. So obviously my most favourite pasta sauce is a tomato-based sauce … made from fresh, ripe, juicy tomatoes that brim with flavour. I read about this method to make tomato sauce a few years ago in a magazine – unfortunately I cannot remember or find the magazine between the thousands of foodie magazines lying around in my house – please try this, it is definitely the most delicious tomato sauce you will ever taste!!

Serves: 6
Preparation and cooking time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

900g Rosa tomatoes
200ml Olive oil – good quality (I know this sounds a lot but the tomatoes burst open to combine with the olive oil, garlic and basil – and creates the most amazing sauce )
8 Garlic cloves – peeled but kept in whole segments
Handful fresh Basil
Salt and black pepper
150 – 200g Fresh parmesan cheese – shaved with potato peeler
500g Penne pasta (or spaghetti)

Method

1. Add the olive oil to a large pan / pot and add the garlic and about one handful of torn basil leaves. Heat the oil very slowly on low-medium – we want to infuse the oil with the garlic and basil. Infuse for about 5 minutes – please don’t burn the garlic.
2. Add all the tomatoes, turn up the heat to medium high and cook for +- 20 minutes without the saucepan lid.
3. You will see the tomatoes will start to burst open and infuse with the olive oil.
4. Season generously with salt and freshly grounded black pepper. Please be sure to taste when you season!
5. Just before serving, add the rest of the basil and sprinkle generously with shaved parmesan
6. You can use the sauce just as is or see the 10 variations below you can add at the end for an interesting twist.

10 Variations you can add to the tomato sauce + remember always sprinkle generously with shaved parmesan!

1) Cut chorizo sausages in slices and add – this makes it a rich and spicy dish.
2) Bacon (+ chilies optional) – everyone loves bacon! Adding a somewhat smoky flavour to your pasta.
3) Meatballs – you can make this on Sunday and just add in the week to your pasta dish.
4) Lots of fresh chopped chilies – simple, yet always deliciously and one of my favourites.
5) Capers + olives + anchovies + chilies – my absolute favourite!
6) Any seafood – prawns, calamari, fish, mussels – add them to the tomato based sauce at the end of the cooking process – let it simmer through for 5 minutes – taste for seasoning again after you have added any seafood.
7) Fresh herbs (basil, parsley) and lots of rocket – mix it with the sauce – yum.
8) Roasted vegetables + olives + capers + crumbled feta – these produce lovely Mediterranean tastes.
9) Artichokes, creamy feta cheese + sprinkle of dry oregano (use the oregano very sparingly).
10) Fresh slices of buffalo mozzarella + sprinkled with smoked Maldon salt .

lifeisazoobiscuit.com

Jun22

roasted cauliflower soup with brie + smoked paprika + little toasts

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Derick Henstra is the Chairman of the company that I am very fortunate to work for. He is an amazing individual, architect, artist, food lover and wine connoisseur. A while ago he told me about a cauliflower soup with brie, smoked paprika and crostini (“little toasts” in Italian) that he ate in Durban. I immediately decided that I would have to make and taste this – I made it a bit different…choosing to roast the cauliflower … well, I cannot tell you how amazing it tasted. The smoked paprika certainly compliments the roasted cauliflower and the melting brie inside gives it just that extra edge. There is not one flavour that overpowers the other and all seems to come together in perfect harmony … it is a simple + beautiful bowl of joy! This one is for you dh … carpe diem.

Note: Smoked paprika is a wonderful ingredient but please use it sparingly + with respect. You can easily overpower the dish with its strong flavour. I bought the smoked paprika at Newport Deli in Cape Town.

Serves 6
Preparation Time: 10 min
Roasting and Cooking Time: 50 min

Ingredients
2 Cauliflower heads – cut into bite-sized florets
1 Big onion – cut into quarters
2T Olive oil
2 Cup water
1 Chicken or Vegetable stock cube
2 Cups full-cream milk (if you want it richer you can replace one cup of milk with cream or you can use fat free milk as a more healthier option)
20g Butter (or more 🙂 )
1 Large pinch of salt
Black pepper to taste
125g Brie cheese – cut into 6 pieces
Smoked Paprika to sprinkle over the soup.

Preparing the “little toasts”
Cut a French loaf into thin slices and toast in toaster.

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees.
2. Put cauliflower and onion in bowl – pour the olive oil over it and swirl the contents around in the bowl until all the vegetable pieces are lightly covered in oil. Place on baking tray and bake in the oven for +- 25 – 30 minutes until roasted and browned.
3. Take a pot, add the water and the stock cube.
4. Add the cauliflower and onion and simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Add the milk and liquidize. It will have a nice thick consistency. If you find the consistency too thick just add a bit of extra milk.
6. Add the butter and season with salt and pepper. Please taste and use more salt if needed.
7. Pour piping hot soup into bowls. Put a wedge of brie in each, then add the “little toasts” on top and sprinkle lightly with smoked paprika!

Tuck-in and enjoy!

Jun10

tomato + onion + basil + puff pastry = easy + hearty tomato tart

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I just LOVE tomatoes – and I need no inspiration to cook with these amazing and nutritional gifts from nature’s wonderful garden. This is probably the easiest and most delicious tomato tart you will ever taste – simple, hearty, sweet and sour and such a rich taste when combined with the caramalised onions!
Serve this with a side serving of rocket salad + balsamic dressing!

Preparation time: 10 min
Baking time: 25 min
Serves: 6

Ingredients
1 ½ Big onion – thinly sliced
2 T Olive oil
Pinch of salt
500g Rosa tomatoes
1 Roll puff pastry
30 – 40 g Parmesan cheese grated
1 handful of shredded fresh basil leaves
Salt
Pepper
To serve
Parmesan shavings
Handful of basil leaves – shredded

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 200°C.
2. In a pan – on medium heat – caramalise the onions for about 10 minutes until golden brown.
3. Take a +- 37cm by 25cm pan (+- the same size as the puff pastry) put the tomatoes in the pan. Sprinkle with olive oil and roll around till each tomato is lightly coated in oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and a bit of black pepper.
4. Take the caramalised onion and scoop these over the tomatoes.
5. Sprinkle the grated parmesan and a hand full of shredded basil over the tomatoes.
6. Take the whole piece of pastry and cover the tomatoes. Don’t press it down or anything. I you want you can tuck the sides in.
7. Bake for 25 minutes or till pastry is a lovely golden colour.
8. Turn over on a big dish (so the tomatoes are on top) and sprinkle some shredded fresh basil and parmesan shavings.
9. Cut into pieces and serve with your green rocket salad….

Remember to never forget the “pomme d’amour”!