E is for Eggs and Edamame

There seems to be massive gaps between my blog posts, I have been super slack, I actually had the photos all ready to go for this one last week but haven't been able to find the time to sit down and actually write it, so here goes...

April was my 'fly free' month for the year with no trips away planned for a change, but it was still so busy! I had my mum, sister and a friend here for a week, and we shopped and shopped and shopped, and also managed to squeeze in a show, and a winery tour out to the Yarra Valley - highlight was definitely the homestyle cooked lunch and wine at Seville Hill, followed by some grape stomping action at Whispering Hills.

I finished another round of the 12WBT last week, with minimal physical changes, but I have learnt to manage my eating better - diet coke is not the answer if I'm hungry and craving sweet! I think we all know what is good and bad for us but sometimes need to be reminded. One thing that I eat heaps of these days that tends to have some myths associated with it is eggs - while some say they are high in cholesterol and fat, and they actually do contain these things, but in the form of polyunsaturated fats. In other words, the types of fats you should be eating rather than things like butter. The whites are also the purest form of protein you can find in food, plus they have a number of other vitamins and minerals. So eat your eggs! I am a massive fan of omlettes or poached for brekky, but for something a little different this time I tried sous-vide style eggs - cooking at a lower temperature for longer which aims to keep the food more flavorsome and evenly cooked. Well worth the one hour wait, these were so creamy and delicious. I used my thermomix but theres plenty of online recipes for using your stove top, but it might be harder to regulate your temperature.

Sous-Vide Eggs

(adapted from Themomix Recipe Community)

5 eggs
2 litres water (I used 1 L boiling, 1 L warm tap water)

Boil 1 L water in your conventional jug. Add to TM bowl with 1 L warm tap water.

Place the whole eggs (in shell) on he basket basket and place into the TM full of water.
Cook at 60degs / 60min / speed 3.

Crack the eggs over your toast, pouring them out like raw ones.

I have another 'E' food that I really want to share - Edamame. So tasty! These are a really delicious and easy snack from the frozen section at the Asian grocers, you may have seen them on sushi trains, in Japanese restaurants and the like. I have a bag in the freezer so i can put a handful in the microwave with some water, then sprinkle with salt and serve. YUM!

C is for Cacao, and Cruising back home, AND D is for Date

I spent a week at home in New Zealand relaxing for a week, hanging with family. Sometimes the best holidays are the ones when you do a whole lot of not much - this was definitely one of those. J and I spent the better part of a week hanging out in Levin, which is a tiny town in the south of the North Island, population of about 20,000, and not a whole lot going on, so we just hung out with my Nana, weeded her garden, cooked and baked - including a VERY indulgent Banana Cake (from my newly inherited old school Edmonds cookbook, with the quantities in pounds and ounces <3<3<3) with Chocolate Buttercream frosting and whipped cream filling. We also a couple of day trips, as well as having a few nights in the capital city Wellington to complete our week away.

One highlight was definitely the trip over the hill to Martinborough for the day. I was in wine and cheese heaven! If I was to go back I would stay at least a night here and adventure round a little more - you can hire bikes in the town to get around the vineyards and the town centre is so cute. We had lunch at Alana Estate, visited a couple of other wineries, then had some more local wine and cheese at Village Cafe in Martinborough, before visiting my favorite winery of the day - Loop Line in Opaki, small vineyard that produces a delicious drop.

But now, back in Melbourne, reality, the 12WBT (which has been a bit of a fail this round), and this blog... I am only up to 'C' and its already April, I figured I better get cooking and writing, so have also combined 'D' in this post...

Cacao (raw chocolate - YUM) is high in antioxidants (around 4 times the amount of cocoa powder!), has many cardiovascular benefits, AND its an aphrodisiac! There are some great cacao recipes you can try here.

Fresh dates are available in most supermarkets in the produce section. Medijool dates are a good source of fiber and contain high levels of the essential minerals potassium, magnesium, copper, and manganese.

Check out the recipe below, which produces delicious little brownie bites, a combination of these 2 super foods to have with your cup of green tea.



Raw Cacao Fudge Bites
(adapted from Melissa Ambrosini)

1/2 cup walnut
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup dates
1 1/4 cups fresh dates, pitted
1/2 cup cacao powder

Whizz all the ingredients together in a food processor (Thermomix 1 minute speed 9) unitil it is in small crumbs. Press into balls or a small mould and freeze for 1 hour before serving. Store extras in the fridge to enjoy with a cup of green tea as an after dinner treat.

What's eating you?

Well, the 12WBT (for me for this round anyway) is officially over, I'm sure I will be back for another round as there is always more to learn, and I would highly recommend it. I feel like the biggest lesson I learned is that about 80% of weight-loss is what you eat - the whole "you are what you eat" thing is true! It doesn't matter how much you exercise if you still fill up on junk food. How annoying is that! Sadly it's not enough to stop my bake-fests, so never fear! And sadly I finished the 12WBT with a binge - a weekend in Adelaide visiting my friend Katy and her gorgeous little family, and drinking and eating mostly junk food for two days straight... OOPS! To be fair you can't really go to Adelaide without visiting a surrounding wine region or few - we went to just one this time around. South Australia is well known for its wine (mostly reds, but it was not a red wine kind of day),  and the hot weather took us to McLaren Vale, where we visited a really cute little brewery, Goodieson which had a delicious Pale Ale and IPA, Hugh Hamilton Wines for a tasty Rose, and Penny's Hill which had a really nice Sauvignon Blanc.

I figure since I had a binge-fest in the weekend I might as well have one more treat - the guys in the office will appreciate them tomorrow...

Raspberry Red Velvet cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow tops

(I can't take complete credit for inventing these, I got the idea from heartbreakpies blog and have made the cupcakes a few times, and even won a bake off with them at work (yes another bake off!). I have wanted to try using a toasted marshmellow topping on something for awhile - nothing like a Tuesday night home alone to try new things...)

Use my previous Vanilla Cupcake recipe but leave out the vanilla, and when up to the stage when adding the dry ingredients, mix together 1 tablespoon red food coloring (one day I will try a proper red food cake) and 1 tablespoon cocoa in a small bowl making a smooth paste. Add with the dry ingredients. Mix in TMX until just combined (TMX 10-20sec ish/Reverse/Sp 5).

Spoon into cases, add 2 raspberries to each and push in slightly. Bake for 12-14 mins, pull the cupcakes out, put the oven on grill. Place a large marshmallow on top of each cupcake and put back in the oven until the top is just toasted and the marshmallows begin to melt. This will not take long so don't walk away from the oven! Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. The marshmallows will be a little sticky until they cool.

C is for cookie... omnomnomnom...

Another week or few of failing somewhat to stick to the diet, and I blame cookies (hopefully you have had a chance to read my past post introducing my Cookie Monster), wine (on that note, another plug for Redbox Winery, their Cabernet Blanc is amazing - light drinking, similar to a Rose, perfect summer wine), and Melbourne Cup. I thought I had my self control well refined but it turns out I have a weakness for cookies, and get into the whole internal debate with myself when presented with the temptation - surely one won't hurt...???

One of my (numerous) favorite cookies, which has been a not so secret love of mine since the days when we used to go on our family Christmas camping trips to the Coromandel, is Afghans. Nana would always bring enough baking to feed an army, and I always used to sniff these babies out and make sure I got my share - the list of other delish treats such as Ginger Crunch, Fruit Cake, Surprises, Choc Coconut Slice were all equally as good but these ones are something extra special. They are one of my mum's favorites too, so she has got Nana's recipe off her, and was kind enough to share it with me. J is also a big fan of these

Afghans 

200 grams butter, soft not melted
1/2 cup castor sugar
1 1/2 cups  flour
3 Tbsp cocoa powder
3 cups corn flakes
2/3 cup of dark chocolate drops or buttons

Pre-heat the oven to 170. Line two baking trays with baking paper. Cream the butter and sugar, add flour and cocoa powder and mix. Fold in the cornflakes (don't worry if they smash up). Roll into balls, place on trays and flatten slightly with a fork. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
Melt the choc drops (I do this in the microwave, 10 sec at a time, stirring in between). Mix well until the chocolate is a smooth consistency. Drizzle on to cookies. (Nana used to put a walnut on top too but I prefer them without).

The Dinner Club

Week three of the challenge has begun, and I am looking today as a fresh start, the weekend involved a few too many bottles of wine... although one worth a mention - an amazing bottle of red from Redbox Vineyard (http://www.redboxvineyard.com.au/) out in Kangaroo Ground just out of Melbourne - they make an amazing Cabernet Sauvignon, the couple who run the place are gorgeous, they have awesome cheese platters, and have a homemade Cabernet Jelly that's delish. Well worth a visit (below pic of Abbie enjoying amazing platters/wine etc on site at Red Box Vineyard hosted by the lovely Mrs Spencer, maker of the previously mentioned delish Cabernet Jelly).

A few months ago a couple of girlfriends and I started what we call 'The Dinner Club', taking turns hosting dinner at home. It is a great concept, it gives you a chance to have a good gossip and try out new recipes (J is a meat and three veg kind of guy, so I have to save the gourmet for the girls). It was my turn to host on Sunday, and my three course extravaganza (it has become quite competitive) included Prawn, fish and macadamia cakes, Vietnamese beef salad, and Ricotta, apricot and walnut baked pears. All were massive hits!

Prawn, Fish and Macadamia Cakes with Mint Yoghurt

(adapted from Australian Macadamia Society recipe)

500g uncooked prawns (I used the bigger ones with the tails still on, less effort required to peel!)
400g boneless fish fillets (Basa is good)
100g (2/3 cup) roasted macadamias, chopped (dry roast raw ones in TMX for 20mins/Varoma/Sp1 then chop 4 sec/Sp 7)
1 tbsp green curry paste
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp coriander leaves, chopped (TMX 3 sec/Sp 7)
Olive oil spray
2/3 cup greek yoghurt
2 tbsp chopped mint

Combine mint and yogurt and refrigerate. Peel and devein the prawns. Place in TMX with fish, and blend 20 sec/Sp 7. Add the chopped macadamias, curry paste, lemon juice, and coriander to the TMX bowl and mix 20 sec/Sp 5. Roll into small balls (I made bite sized, they cook quicker and you can just use toothpicks to eat them). Heat a non-stick frying pan, lightly sprayed with olive oil. Add balls and cook until golden on each side or just cooked through. Serve with yoghurt and mint dipping sauce.

Vietnamese Beef Salad

1kg steak (I used eye fillet)
4 tbsp fish sauce
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
¾ cup white wine vinegar
¼ cup caster sugar
150g thin vermicelli rice noodles
1 large carrot, peeled, finely shredded
2 Lebanese cucumbers, thinly sliced
1 cup mint leaves
Fried shallots and chopped chilli to serve

Place steak into a glass bowl. Add 2 tbsp fish sauce and garlic. Toss until well combined. Cover and marinate for at least 1 hour. While this is marinating you can prepare the dressing - combine the vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to the boil. Transfer to a bow to cool then add remaining fish sauce. When you are close to ready to serve, place noodles into a heatproof bowl. Cover with boiling water and stand for 5 minutes or until soft and transparent. Drain. Heat a non-stick frying pan, or heat your barbecue. When hot, add steaks and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side or until medium rare. Transfer to chopping board. Cover and stand for 10 minutes. Diagonally slice. Place beef, noodles, carrot, cucumber and mint leaves on serving plates. Drizzle with dressing and serve with chilli and shallots on the side.

Ricotta, Apricot and Walnut baked pears
(adapted from Michelle Bridges recipe)

For these I just whipped up some ricotta and dried apricots in TMX (10 sec/Sp 7), spooned on to some halved pears, sprinkled with walnuts (crushed in TMX, 3 sec/Sp 7), and baked in the oven for half an hour.

The ingredients for the meal were all fresh from the markets, which is worth the trek for, they just taste so much better, especially the meat. Although it can be a pretty intense experience, and should not be tackled whilst hungover! I usually go to the Queen Vic markets in the city in Melbourne, but have been known to brave the Preston Markets on days I am feeling up to the battle of the bigger crowds there as they tend to have better prices.