On The Subject of Food...

Ahhh....it's Saturday again...and the rain has begun to fall. I love the sound of it on my 'tin' roof. I guess that puts a stop to my running a marathon around the mountain today! Damn it! ;)

So, instead I'll share a couple of recipes with you...far better idea, I think...and I won't raise a sweat over it!

Savoury Damper: Combine 400g self-raising flour, 1 teaspoon dried oregano and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Using your fingertips, rub in 30g finely chopped cold butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Combine 1 cup milk and 250g plain yoghurt together with 1/4 cup of coarsely chopped pistachios and 75g crumbled feta. Stir this into the flour mixture. Mix until it all just comes together. Dough will be sticky. Turn out onto a floured surface. Using floured hands, divide into 8 portions. Form portions into 10cm rounds. Using a floured knife, score a cross on top of each round.

Place dough on a greased oven tray. Sprinkle tops with some more chopped pistachios and feta. Bake at 210C for 17-20 minutes (until risen and lightly browned). Serve hot or warm with an antipasto platter.


Prawn With Asparagus and Sweet & Sour Dressing: Cook a couple of bunches of fresh, trimmed asparagus in boiling, salted water for about 3 minutes until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold water.

Grab about 16-20 (depending on how many guests you're serving...this serves about 4)...green king prawns, peeled and deveined. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste. Throw about 30g butter in non-stick pan and caramelise 2 teaspoons sugar. Add the prawns. Cook for a few minutes until just cooked.

To make the dressing: heat 30ml olive oil in frying pan. Add 1 crushed clove of garlic, 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger. Cook for a couple of minutes. Add the sugar and deglaze the pan with 30ml white wine vinegar, 30ml chicken stock and 10ml rice vinegar. Season to taste and add a teaspoon sugar. Remove from heat.

To serve: Toss the asparagus together with 120g trimmed and thinly sliced radishes with the dressing. Arrange them on serving plate. Place the prawns on top, garnish with fresh basil leaves. Serve at once...with a nicely chilled Pinot Grigio (or two!)

Rhubarb Clafoutis: Combine 600g trimmed rhubarb, cut into 2-3cm pieces, 150g caster sugar and 2 teaspoons lemon juice in a frying pan. Stir over low heat until sugar is almost dissolved, then cook, covered for another 3-5 minutes or until just tender. Strain rhubarb, reserving liquid.

Whisk 4 eggs, 2 egg yolks and 100g caster sugar until well combine. Then whisk in 1/2 cup plain flour until smooth. Add 200ml milk and 200ml cream (and 1/2 teaspoon rosewater...optional). Whisk until well combined. Divide rhubarb among 8 shallow 1-1/4 cup capacity greased ovenproof dishes (or one suitably sized ovenproof dish) and pour batter over. Place dish/es on a baking tray and bake at 190C for 15 minutes or until just set. Boil reserved cooking juices until syrupy, then drizzle over cooked clafoutis. Serve hot or at room temperature, sprinkled with some caster sugar....and loads and loads of whipped cream (or ice-cream...or both!)


In the words of Eddie Rabbitt... "I love a rainy day...I love a rainy day!"....okay...okay! So I used a bit of poetic license and changed it to 'day' instead of 'night'! Stop being so picky!!!!!!