Pumpkin + Tofu Miso Soup

Don’t let the blurry photo put you off. I just couldn’t make the magic happen for this one, but I promise you this soup is mega delish.

It’s supposed to be spring but Sydney hasn’t caught that drift yet, so tonight is all about trackies, socks, reruns of Family Guy and this bowl of dreams.

The recipe serves four, but since I was eating it alone, I just halved it and ate two servings myself. Shut up.

Recipe by Clean & Green Eating app
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium-sized pumpkin, in 3cm cubes
• 3 medium mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup tri-coloured quinoa
• 3 kale leaves, roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 200g hard tofu, in 1cm cubes
• 1L vegetable stock
• 2 tbsp miso paste
• 1 tsp coconut oil

Method

Rinse the quinoa in a strainer, then add to a small pot along with one cup of water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed.

In a big pot, heat the coconut oil over medium heat and cook the garlic and mushrooms until soft. Now add the pumpkin, quinoa and stock to the pot and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

I like my soups quite thick, so I used slightly less stock. I also jumped in the shower and forgot I had this on the stove, so it was cooking for slightly longer than 20 minutes, which made it even thicker.

Add the kale to the pot and mash the pumpkin with a fork. Finally, add the tofu and miso paste, and stir. Cook for a few more minutes, then turn off the heat.

Ladle into bowls and enjoy.

Tuna + Quinoa Rainbow Salad

Back when I had a real job, where I worked in an office and shared a kitchen, people would often gather around me as I prepared my breakfast and lunch.

They’d get super-excited to see what I’d created for that day, write down the recipe and before long there’d be little Cassie clones in the staff kitchen, making their breakfast eggs and greens, or colourful protein-packed salads at lunch.

This made me feel really good. Not only was I totally in love with food and cooking, people actually genuinely wanted to try what I was making. It’s one of the reasons I started this blog in the first place.

Eating is awesome. Plus, when you’re sitting in an office staring at a computer screen all day, and the only view you have is of a Redfern carpark, a girl’s gotta have something to look forward to in her day besides bedtime.

So when ABC Health & Wellbeing Online asked me to create an easy and healthy lunch recipe that ticked all the nutritional boxes, I couldn’t go past one of my old faves.

Seriously, how sexy is it? Sitting there all colourful and fun like a Warhol – it should really be on display in MoMA.

You’re also getting a massive hit of your RDI of vegies in one sitting. And people say it’s hard to eat healthily!

The cool thing about this salad is that you can basically sub in whatever ingredients you want to change it up and create something different all the time. Chickpeas instead of kidney beans, salmon/chicken/tofu instead of tuna, brown rice instead of quinoa, goats’ cheese instead of feta – you get the idea. And experimenting is the best way to discover different tastes and combos you like, which you can then carry through to the other meals you make.

My motto is: anything can be a salad, it’s just gotta have some green in it.

Serves 2
(Or take the other half for lunch the next day)

Ingredients

• 185g tuna chunks in springwater, drained
• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1/2 tsp vegetable stock
• 1 cup pumpkin, diced (leave skin on)
• 3/4 cup sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1/2 red capsicum, diced
• 1/2 zucchini
• 60g spinach and rocket mix
• 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 1/4 cup kidney beans
• 1/4 cup low-fat feta
• few sprigs rosemary
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Rinse quinoa, then add to a small pot with one cup of water and vegetable stock. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes until the water has absorbed and the quinoa has gone slightly transparent. Turn off the stove and after the quinoa has cooled slightly, fluff with a fork.

Meanwhile, put the pumpkin, sweet potato, capsicum and rosemary sprigs on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and mix well. Crack over some salt and bake until cooked through; 15-20 minutes.

Slice the zucchini into rounds and fry in a non-stick pan over medium heat until browned.

Throw the greens into a big bowl and add the tuna, zucchini, peas, kidney beans and crumbled feta.

Once the quinoa and vegies are cooked, allow to cool slightly, then add to the bowl.

Crack over some salt and pepper, drizzle with the lemon juice and toss well.

Average	Per serving (530g)
Energy	2210kJ
Protein	44g
Fat	15g
Saturated fat	5g
Carbohydrate	49g
Sugars	9g
Dietary fibre	10g
Sodium	600mg

Kumera + Peanut Butter Soup with Warm Quinoa Rolls

Yes, there is a God – someone’s managed to add peanut butter to soup. First it was toast, then it was smoothies and desserts, and now, finally, it’s in dinner.

Slowly but surely, this angel paste is infiltrating its way into everything we eat. Hallelujah.

Unfortunately though, this itsy-bitsy pretty little photo-sized bowl you see here is all I got of it. Why? you ask. Because when I put the rest in a plastic container and told my boyfriend to take some to work for dinner that night what’d he do? He took it all.

Piggy-wiggy Oinky McFace snorted it all down with glee, while I was left with a batch of quinoa rolls and a jar of peanut butter. So what did I do? you ask. Ate the rest of the jar off a butter knife in front of reruns of Criminal Minds.

Quit judging me – as if you wouldn’t do it too.

Seriously though, you need to start eating this soup on the regular. It’s dead easy to make, takes almost no time and tastes pret-ty epic.

The warm quinoa rolls I served with the soup are from here. It’s technically supposed to be a loaf but I made little muffiny roll thingos instead. If you’re going to do that, you probably won’t need to bake them for as long, so just check on them after 40 minutes or so.

Recipe by Lorna Jane in her cookbook Nourish

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp. cold-pressed extra-virgin coconut oil
• 1 small brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2.5 cm piece fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 small red capsicum, chopped coarsely
• 500g of kumara (sweet potato), chopped coarsely
• 1 medium tomato, chopped coarsely
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 2.5 cups filtered water or coconut milk (I just used water)
• 50g green beans, trimmed, halved lengthways
• 1/2 fresh long red chilli, sliced thinly
• 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh coriander leaves
• 2 tbsp roasted unsalted peanuts or cashews
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Method

Heat oil in a medium saucepan; cook onion, garlic and ginger, stirring, until onion softens. Add cinnamon and cook, stirring, for about one minute until fragrant.

Add capsicum, kumara, tomato, peanut butter and the water, and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes or until kumara is tender. Cool soup for 10 minutes.

Now blend the soup, in batches, until smooth

Season to taste and ladle into serving bowls. Serve topped with beans, chilli, coriander, nuts and lime wedges.

Zesty Fish + Black Bean Tortillas

Mexican food is just so now right now. I’m so on board with it that I’ve booked a holiday to Mexico at the end of the year – and all I’m going to do there is eat like an absolute boss.

When ABC Health & Wellbeing Online asked me to create a dish containing black beans, my mind immediately went to tortillas. And because the meals I create for the ABC are approved by Food & Nutrition Australia, you know I ain’t feeding you some sloppy roadside grease-fest (even though that’s exactly what I’ll be mainlining come December).

Feel free to use corn or wholemeal tortillas here and whichever white fish you prefer. These taste really light and fresh; the toasted coconut/sesame seed combo is my fave part – a clever addition I feel pretty smug about, actually.

Serves 4

 Ingredients

• 4 x 100g white-fleshed fish fillets
• 4 tomatoes
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 lime
• Small handful mint
• Small handful coriander
• 1/2 avocado
• 200g black beans (either canned or dried beans that have been soaked overnight and cooked)
• 8 wholemeal/corn tortillas (corn will make the dish gluten-free)
• 2 tbsp coconut (flaked or desiccated)
• 3 tbsp sesame seeds
• 4 tbsp reduced-fat feta
• Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Dice the tomatoes and red onion then add to a bowl. Now zest the lime and add that to the bowl as well.

Finely chop the mint and coriander and add to the salsa mix, saving some to sprinkle over the top of the tortillas. Slice the lime in wedges and squeeze it over the salsa according to taste. Crack over some salt and pepper, mix well and set aside.

Chop the avocado into chunks and add to a small bowl, then drain and rinse the black beans and add them to another small bowl. Set both aside.

Warm the tortillas according to packet instructions.

Heat a non-stick pan on high and cook the fish fillets. You will probably need to do them in batches, so keep the cooked ones warm in the oven until the others are done. When they’re all cooked, flake with a fork.

In a small dry pan, toast the coconut and sesame seeds until they’re lightly brown and smell delicious. Keep an eye on them because they burn quickly. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Top each tortilla with fish, salsa, avocado, black beans, a tablespoon of crumbled feta and a sprinkling of the coconut/sesame mix. Add a few more fresh herbs, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste.

For more of my ABC Health & Wellbeing recipes, click here.

Average	Per serving (435g)
Energy	1950kJ
Protein	33g
Fat	19g
Saturated fat	6g
Carbohydrate	38g
Sugars	10g
Dietary fibre	10g
Sodium	505mg

Mediterranean Vegetable Salad

Most of the time it feels like I’m in the minority on this, but I really, really don’t like winter. It’s cold, it’s uncomfortable and it’s unAustralian.

Everyone else seems to love the cold; meanwhile, I wear a cardi when it’s 28 degrees and sunny, so winter for me is the absolute worst.

While I was hibernating one day, avoiding leaving the house at any cost (did I mention I’m currently…between careers?) I thought I may as well make myself useful and channel all my winter aggression into something productive.

If I can’t actually be in a Mediterranean summer, I can at least try to lunch like I am.

Eat this colourful salad with an oversized glass of vino and pretend you’re sitting on a beach in Barcelona, slathered in 30+ and perving on all the hot Spaniards like the seedy tourist you are. You’ll forget all about the crappy weather outside.

Nutritionally, the more colourful your food, the more vitamins, mineral and antioxidants you’ll be eating, which is especially important for keeping healthy during winter.

Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side

Ingredients

• 1 zucchini, cut into chunks
• 1 squash, in thick slices
• 4 mushrooms, halved
• 1 carrot, in chunks
• 1/2 red capsicum, in thick pieces
• 1/2 sweet potato, in 1/2cm slices
• 4 whole baby Roma tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes)
• 10 whole pitted black olives
• 2 handfuls mixed greens (I used silverbeet and watercress)
• 2 tsp capers
• 2 tbsp pepitas
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• Few sprigs dill and coriander
• Garlic-infused olive oil
• Salt + pepper, to taste

Method

Preheat oven to 180C and line two oven trays with baking paper.

Spread the carrot and sweet potato across one and drizzle with garlic-infused olive oil. Put them in the oven first, as they’ll take 5-10 minutes longer to cook than the other vegies.

Now spread the rest of the vegies (except the greens and olives) on the other tray and drizzle with garlic-infused olive oil. Put this tray in the oven, too.

After 15 minutes, give everything a good stir, then bake for 10 minutes or so until everything is cooked but not mushy.

Remove from the oven and drain on some paper towel if needed.

Meanwhile, toast the pepitas in a small dry pan until they smell toasty and start to pop. This won’t take long so keep an eye on them.

In a big salad bowl, combine the baked veg, mixed greens, olives, chopped fresh herbs, pepitas and capers.

Drizzle over the balsamic vinegar, season with salt and pepper, and toss well.

Serve and get warm.

The Get-Loaded Sweet Potato

Get a load of this . . .

Alright, so she’s not the prettiest girl in the room.

Consider this a lesson in the importance of inner beauty, because I’m telling you, while she might resemble Quasimodo on the outside, inside this girl is all Gisele.

It took over an hour to make and less than two minutes to demolish. We were at this thing like a couple of hyenas attacking a zebra carcass.

I’ve put my ingredients below, but you could put anything in a loaded sweet potato. You’ll see that I haven’t given exact quantities; I’m giving you free rein to create whatever monstrosity your heart desires. In fact, I demand you come up with the messiest, tastiest, most incredible fillings and just go to town on that mofo. Just make sure they’re healthy and fresh. And no, that does not mean sour cream and bacon.

Next time we’re thinking about slow-cooked pork and homemade ‘slaw. It’s also a great way of sexing up leftovers, or just getting rid of food that’s starting to get a bit scabby. Waste not, want not, dear readers.

It was so much fun sitting on our balcony in the sun eating this. We actually kept refilling it with more chook, vegies and dukkah – so don’t be shy.

Based on a recipe by Nourish by Ashlyn
Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 large sweet potato
• Low-fat feta cheese
• Shredded free-range BBQ chook
• Cherry tomatoes
• Fresh coriander
• Dukkah
• Mushrooms
• Cinnamon

Avocado dressing

• 1/4 small avocado
• 1/4 cup plain yoghurt
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• Salt + pepper

Put all the ingredients in a blender and whiz. Or for a chunkier dressing, just mash it all together by hand.

Method

Preheat the oven to 230C. Give the sweet potato a good scrub under the tap, then dry it with a paper towel. Now poke holes all over it with a fork. Stick it uncovered on a tray and bake until soft; about one hour.

In the meantime, make your avocado dressing and set aside.

Once the potato is cooked, split it down the middle and scoop out the inside and put in a small bowl. Don’t take all of it; you want it to retain its shape so you can stuff it back in.

Crumble the feta into the bowl and sprinkle over some cinnamon. Combine well, season with salt and pepper, then stuff it back into the potato shell.

Now for the fun part: get all your other ingredients and shove them into the potato. Inside, over the top, anywhere they’ll fit. Then spoon blobs of ‘avo dressing over the top. Season with salt, pepper and dukkah.

Roll up your sleeves, grab a fork and get loaded.

 

Tandoori Salmon + Mixed Rice Salad

How awesome is salmon? It gets next-level awesome in this salad, so get prepared because you’re about to have your mind blown. I think this is the best salad of 2014. In fact, it’s so good we had it for dinner twice last week.

The original recipe called for brown rice, but I had some Rice Plus in the cupboard so used that, instead. It’s basically a gluten-free blend of brown, red and white rice; quinoa; buckwheat; millet; and black sesame seeds.

The original recipe also used hot smoked salmon, but fresh all the way, I say.

Adapted from a recipe by The Kitchen Coquette
Technically probably serves 4, but 2 in our house

Ingredients

200g skinless salmon fillets
2 cups cooked Rice Plus (or regular brown rice)
1 medium Lebanese cucumber, cut into ribbons using a peeler
3/4 cup fresh peas, blanched and refreshed
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 bunch dill, finely chopped
1/2 bunch coriander, coarsely torn

To finish
2 tsp tandoori paste
1/2 cup natural yoghurt
Lemon wedges to serve

Method

Cook the salmon fillets to your liking, either on a grill pan or in the oven. Once they’re done, flake with a fork.

Combine the salmon, rice, cucumber and peas in a large bowl. Toss gently to combine and season generously with salt and pepper. Add the lemon zest, juice and olive oil, stirring to coat. Reserve the herbs until you are ready to eat, then roughly scatter across the top of the salad.

Combine the tandoori paste and yoghurt in a small bowl. Dollop blobs of yoghurt on top of the salad and serve with lemon wedges.

Chia & flaxseed loaf

I love bread. Well, all carbs really, but nothing beats a slice of freshly baked, still-warm bread, smothered with ‘avo or butter and Vegemite, or chunky peanut butter. Oh Lordy.

Because my digestive system is a complete lemon, I can’t eat regular bread. And when someone tells me I can’t have something, it makes me want it even more.

So you’re probably going to see quite a few different gluten-free bread recipes here, like this yummy paleo one I posted a few months back.

There’s just so much you can top this latest loaf with; I had some roasted pumpkin and sweet potato in the fridge so just smeared it with that, then sprinkled some fresh herbs and salt and pepper over the top.

This will keep for one week in the fridge or two months in the freezer.

Recipe by Lee Holmes at Supercharged Food

Ingredients

• 2 1/3 cups gluten-free self-raising flour
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 3/4 cup mixed sunflower seeds and pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 4 organic eggs
• 1 tsp apple-cider vinegar
• 4 tbsp melted unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup coconut milk (I used Zymil because I didn’t have coconut milk)
• 6 drops stevia liquid (I didn’t use this)
• 1/2 cup water

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C; grease and flour a 20 x 9cm loaf tin. Or you could just line it with baking paper, which is what I did.

Combine the flour, flaxseed, chia, sunflower and pumpkin seeds and salt in a bowl, and mix until combined.

In a separate large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs for about two minutes – they should be pale and fluffy.

Stir in the apple-cider vinegar, butter, milk, stevia and water. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour mixture and stir well to combine.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the loaf comes out clean. Keep an eye on it; I baked mine for 40, but it probably only needed 30-35.

Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

A bottom-of-the-fridge frittata

This happens a lot in our house: end of week, fridge empty, grab keys, head to pub for $10 dinner.

Please tell me you do this, too!

So in a bid to save money and see just how thrifty I can be in the kitchen, I thought I’d throw something together from whatever was left in the fridge and starting to go a bit crusty.

I have to say, the result wasn’t too shabby. In fact, it was quite delicious and we were still eating it the next day. The best thing about frittatas is that you can basically eat them for any meal, and throw whatever veg you want in them.

Here’s what I used . . .

Ingredients

• 8 eggs
• 1/2 sweet potato
• 1 zucchini
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• Handful greens (I used silverbeet)
• Feta cheese
• Few sprigs fresh herbs (I used rosemary and oregano)
• Salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C and thinly slice the sweet potato. Lay the slices in the bottom of a square baking dish (I line the dish with baking paper first – less washing up, yo!), then put it in the oven.

While that’s cooking, crack the eggs into a bowl and give them a good whisk. Set aside.

Wilt the greens in a pan over medium heat until they’re soft, then remove from the stove. Now thinly slice the zucchini.

Add the peas, as much crumbled feta as you want, the fresh herbs, and salt and pepper to the egg mix and combine well.

Remove the sweet potato from the oven and spread the sliced zucchini and wilted greens over the top. Now pour over the egg mix. You could crumble a bit more feta over the top now if you’d like.

Put the dish back in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes until the egg has set and it’s nice and brown on top.

Allow to cool slightly then cut into thick slices; eat by itself or with a side salad. This tastes great the next day, hot or cold.

Like I said, you can really put whatever veg you want in here – I just used these ingredients because they were all I had.

I’d love to hear your faves so I can give them a go myself.

Beef and cashew lettuce cups

Last week I posted this recipe for a Tender Beef Salad with Mustard Dressing, which was the first in my One Meat, Two Meals series for ABC Health and Wellbeing Online.

And today I give you . . . wait for it . . . the second recipe.

If you’re coming late to this, the idea behind it is to make two cheap and easy (but really tasty) meals from just one slow-cooked beef topside.

I don’t usually play favourites with my babies, but this meal is definitely my favourite of the two. These cups are a flavoursome dinner that won’t send you to bed with a heavy stomach.

Like all my other recipes for the ABC, this meal meets the Australian Healthy Eating Guidelines and has been given Food & Nutrition Australia’s seal of approval.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup uncooked brown rice
• 1 baby Cos lettuce (or any lettuce – just make sure the leaves are big enough)
• 1 large red capsicum
• 1 large green capsicum
• Splash olive oil
• 1 tbsp hoisin sauce
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 240g shredded topside
• Coriander to garnish

Method

Cook the rice according to packet instructions.

Meanwhile, gently separate eight lettuce leaves. Give them a rinse and allow to dry. You might need to pat them with a paper towel.

Thinly slice the capsicums and add them to a pan over medium heat with a splash of olive oil.

Let them soften, stirring regularly, for 2-3 minutes. Now add the hoi sin sauce and stir well. Cook for another 5-8 minutes, until the capsicums are tender but not really soft. They should still be nice and colourful.

In a dry pan, toast the cashews until they’re brown. Keep an eye on them because they can quickly burn. Remove from the pan and roughly chop.

Once the rice is cooked, drain well.

Put a spoonful or so of rice onto each lettuce leaf, followed by the shredded beef and capsicum mix. Top each one with some roasted cashews and garnish with coriander.

Fold up the sides and eat with your hands.

Average	Per serving (310g)
Energy	2010kJ
Protein	24g
Fat	24g
Saturated fat	5g
Carbohydrate	40g
Sugars	7g
Dietary fibre	6g
Sodium	220mg