Tag Archives: parmesan

experimenting- sometimes it pays off and sometimes…

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Sometimes my experimenting in the kitchen pays off, sometimes…not quite so much.

Take it from me, mashed wasabi potatoes with purple carrots doesn’t work. It should have, but it didn’t. It really, really didn’t work.

I should have taken a picture of the gluey mess that this dish was. Just for the comedic value of how badly  it lay on our plates. I’m not sure what was the clincher, but it was like eating funny tasting soupy playdough. (With out the fun of having played with it before hand.)

The Monkeys refused to go near it, purple wasn’t for them. Mr Chocolate bravely tried to plod through it until I told it was ok, he really didn’t have to be so brave.  I also gave up after the multiple sips of water in between, just trying to get the sucker down.

So no, I won’t be trying that one again, (and perhaps I shouldn’t have been experimenting on Mr Chocolate’s birthday.)

Lucky for me (and lucky for everyone else involved) these scrolls I have also been experimenting with lately didn’t have the same effect as the purple wasabi playdough.

Pesto Parmesan Scrolls

150g starter

1 tsp yeast

60mls tepid water

100g melted butter

125mls milk

1 1/4 salt

3 cups flour (450g)

pesto

parmesan

Add starter, yeast and water-  together. Whisk and leave for an hour or so. Mix remaining ingredients together and then knead for 5 minutes on a lightly floured surface or until well incorporated and dough is smooth. Leave to prove for a couple of hours. Roll out to a rectangle. Spoon pesto on, grate some parmesan. Roll up dough, slice into portions. Place on a lined tray, allow to prove for another hour or so. Bake at 190 for 20-25 minutes.

soup with olive oil parmesan crackers- Frugal Friday

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It’s been awhile since I did a Frugal Friday post. Too long.

It’s winter here, and this week has been wet, rainy, soggy and grey. Perfect weather for soup.

My dad had given me a pumpkin from his garden, and the leeks were looking plump and juicey. Soup it was.

Leek and Pumpkin Soup

A good couple of slurps of olive oil in a large pot

finely chopped leek popped in

cooked until it wilts a little

then drop in your pumpkin pieces

add some water/stock and stick the lid on until soft

whiz it up with a hand mixer

Super basic soup that can be eaten as is or added to. I like adding natural yogurt and tomato chutney on top. Or some thai curry paste if you want a kick in the pants. The best soup is made with great vegetables. If the main ingredient is a tasteless old pumpkin…well the soup is going to taste, tasteless.

Olive Oil Parmesan Crackers

1 1/2 cups (225g) plain flour

1/2 cup (25g) unprocessed bran

1/4 cup (60mls) hot water

3/4 tsp salt

60mls water

80mls olive oil

grated parmesan

black pepper

Add hot water to bran, give it a minute or so to soak in and then in a mixer with a dough hook add all the ingredients and mix until comes together. Parmesan and black pepper put in amounts to your taste (or any other flavours). Knead the mixture for about 10 minutes until you have a stiff dough and then leave covered for about 45 minutes. Roll out to a couple of mm’s and cut what ever shapes you want. Place on a tray and grate extra parmesan over the top. Bake at 180C until light golden and crispy through. Shake them around a bit when you get them out of the oven to pick up any extra parmesan while they are still hot.