Thin Crust Spelt Flour Pizza

It's a new month and time to get back to normal after all of the school and public holidays which have had many of us wandering around much of the time scratching our heads and trying to work out what day it is! (Or maybe that was just me?) Last week I took a little break and the family headed to beautiful Knysna for a couple of wonderfully chilled days. Well, as chilled as you can be with two small children running about. We had a brilliant time and I so enjoyed being out of the normal routine, free from the usual daily chores and away from my laptop screen! Just what the doctor ordered. 

Spicy BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

The other day I was chatting with a group of school moms about cooking, specifically family dinners, and a couple of us (myself included) were saying how we keep soft tortillas in the cupboard for quick, fuss-free suppers when time is limited. The kids love them and they can used to make wraps, fold overs and even pizza. The other meal you can make with them of course is quesadillas!

Soy Cashew Chicken with Jasmine Rice

Quick is the name of the game today and this fabulously delicious dinner will be on the table in thirty minutes, making it a week night winner! It is an adaptation of this chicken dish and I love the addition of crunchy toasted cashews and jasmine rice cooked in coconut milk.

Creamy Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary

After what felt like a particularly cold winter we are in full spring mode, hooray! The worst should be behind us now and I have a suitably zesty and lemony fresh recipe to get you into a sunshiny mood. If you are lucky you may even have a lemon tree in your garden with fresh lemons that you can use to make this amazingly creamy sauce. We have one which was given to us by some good friends several years ago, soon after we moved into our then new home. Fortunately it has not succumbed to drought, pests or a lack of conversation but it has not exactly flourished either. In fact, nearly six years after we planted it, I think it is roughly the same height as it was when we got it, give or take a few extra leaves on either side. So until our stunted tree can get its act together it is store-bought lemons for us! 

Bacon and Broccoli Macaroni Cheese

This post comes a week later than planned, and regular readers might have noticed that I was missing in action last week. The week started with a fun trip to Bloemfontein and a food demonstration (look out for another blog post about this next week) but quickly went downhill after that as I returned home to two sick children as well as having a nasty bout of flu myself! So unfortunately my regular schedule went out of the window, but I am happy to report that aside from a few lingering symptoms things are on the up for team Ulyate!  

A Trio of Summer Spreads - Hummus, Tzatziki, Tuna Pâté

Greetings and Happy New Year everyone! I have had a lovely break, albeit a busy one packed with get togethers with family and friends, bits of admin that we did not get to during the year and plenty of feasting. We even managed to end off with a few days away in beautiful Franschhoek - just my little family, which was a perfect way to end off a busy holiday. It almost made up for the administrative portion of the holiday - because nothing screams "holiday fun" more than having to queue for five hours to renew your car licence and another eight hours for passports! Hey ho.

PEPPADEW® HOT WINGS with BLUE CHEESE DIP

Seeing as we are in Heritage month with National Heritage Day, also popularly known as Braai Day, coming up on Thursday, I thought it would be appropriate to share a recipe that can be whipped up on the old barbie! These hot wings are perfect for spring and summer entertaining - enjoy them around the braai with friends, serve them up at your next party or munch on them while you cheer on the Springboks (she said optimistically)!

HOMEMADE TOMATO SAUCE

In the last few months I have been hearing more and more about sugar, particularly the negative effects it has on body and mind. I have become more conscious of my sugar intake, especially the hidden sugars that lurk in most convenience foods, and thinking of ways to reduce it. Wouldn't it be great, I thought, to develop some sugar-free versions of some of my family's favourite condiments, starting with that oh-so-delicious but oh-so-sugary tomato sauce. I started working on a recipe, but then life just got crazy busy and my poor little recipe slowly slipped down the to do list and was forgotten for a few weeks. 

Heritage Day Pizza

September the 24th is a very special day in South Africa. It marks National Heritage Day, a holiday on which we as South Africans celebrate our rich, cultural diversity. More recently the day has been rebranded as "National Braai Day" - a day for all of us to unite around the fire and indulge in a pastime we all enjoy, having a good old braai! On the eve of this wonderful celebration I couldn't think of a better time to share this recipe with you.

Caramelised Beetroot Tartlets with Salmon Trout and Lentil Stacks

So what would you make with a bunch of fresh beetroot, brown lentils, puff pastry, cream cheese, cucumber and smoked salmon trout? This was my final challenge in the Freshly Blogged campaign. 

Roasted Butternut and Rice Pizza

This week we got back to basics with a new challenge in the Freshly Blogged campaign. Round 7 saw us presented with a list of some of my favourite kitchen staples - butternut, leeks, tinned tomatoes, fresh thyme, rice and a baguette. I almost always have these ingredients on hand, they are the building blocks of many of my favourite meals. The challenge here would be to combine them in an interesting and creative way. And including rice, baguette and butternut in one delicious carbo-loaded dish was going to require some thought! 

I decided to focus on using the rice in an unusual way. When the idea of making a rice pizza came to mind I had no idea whether it would work, but after a small, successful trial run I decided to go for it - and the risk paid off!

Now pizza-lovers, hear me out! I, like you, am an extremely loyal fan of the traditional yeast dough base. Far be it for me to mess around with this timeless and perfect dish, this was not an undertaking I took lightly! I was surprised to discover though, that rice base is a refreshing change, with a pleasant, tender texture. I included leeks in the base for some extra flavour and used egg to stick it all together - hardly a grain was lost when the pizza was sliced! 

I topped the base with a homemade herby tomato sauce, balsamic roasted butternut, crumbly feta and buttery croutons. This was finished off with a thyme and garlic oil which added a final hit of flavour. The flavours came together perfectly! 

One thing is for sure - after creating this recipe I will never look at rice the same way again!

As usual, the recipes have been published on the Freshly Blogged website and voting has now opened to the public. Please take a few seconds to vote for this recipe by clicking HERE. Thanks! 

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ROASTED BUTTERNUT and RICE PIZZA

Makes 1 x 30cm pizza (Serves 2)

For the butternut:

250g butternut, cut into 2cm cubes 
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed
a good pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper

For the base:

1 cup long grain rice
4 cups water
pinch of salt
1/4 cup finely chopped leeks
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large eggs

For the sauce:

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
400g tin chopped tomatoes
3 sprigs of thyme, leaves removed
1/2 teaspoon sugar
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper

For the croutons:

small baguette, preferably a day old
2 tablespoons butter
black pepper

For the thyme oil:

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
3 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper

To assemble:

100g plain feta cheese

Step 1.) Preheat your oven to 200°C. Place the cubed butternut in a small roasting tray and drizzle with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with the thyme leaves, salt and pepper. Cover the tray with foil and roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes, until the butternut is just tender. 

Step 2.) Place the rice, water and salt in a pot. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 25 minutes, or until the rice is cooked.

Step 3.) Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the chopped tomatoes, thyme leaves, sugar, salt and pepper and stir well. Allow to boil gently for 8-10 minutes until the sauce has reduced and is thick. 

Step 4.) Make the croutons by cutting a piece of baguette, roughly 10cm long, into 2cm cubes. They don't have to be perfect! Melt the butter in a saucepan, then add the cubes. Toss the bread in the butter and add a good grinding of black pepper. Continue to fry the baguette cubes for about 5 minutes until crispy and starting to brown. Remove from the pan and set aside. 

Step 5.) By now the rice and butternut should be cooked. Set the roasted butternut aside and increase the oven temperature to 220°C. Line a 30cm pizza pan with greased baking paper. 

Step 6.) Drain the rice well then place in a bowl to cool for a few minutes. Stir in the leeks and olive oil. Whisk the eggs lightly with a fork and add to the rice. Mix everything together well. Tip the rice onto the pizza pan and gently flatten into an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes. 

Step 7.) Meanwhile prepare the thyme oil by combining the olive oil, crushed garlic, thyme leaves, salt and pepper. 

Step 8.) Spread the tomato sauce over the rice base. Sprinkle the butternut cubes and croutons on top. Crumble the feta over the pizza and drizzle with half of the thyme oil. Return to the oven for 10-15 minutes until the feta starts to brown. Drizzle the remaining thyme oil over the pizza and serve immediately. 

Angelfish with Steamed Asparagus and Lime Beurre Blanc

Bonjour! We're getting ever so slightly posh this week with a little help from our French friends. This is the kind of meal usually reserved for those occasions when I have an evening out and can enjoy my dinner at a restaurant, but it's surprisingly simple and perfect for when you want to prepare something extra special at home.

Beurre blanc if you didn't know is a creamy, butter sauce. It is extremely versatile and can be prepared in many ways - you could add herbs, stock or even red wine. The variations are almost endless, and this is my version.

Beurre blanc is the perfect accompaniment to seafood and green veg, and I paired it with what I had in the fridge at the time - angelfish and asparagus on this occasion  You could enjoy it with tuna or salmon (my favourite) and other green veggies like green beans and broccoli.  You could also serve it with crushed baby potatoes or mash if you like. 

Although the components of this dish are fairly straightforward it's the timing that can be tricky. You'll want to have everything ready to be plated at the same time, especially the sauce which should be served immediately. 

If you follow the instructions below you shouldn't have any problems making the beurre blanc, but please take note of a few things:  you should make sure that your butter is cold as this will help prevent the sauce from splitting. Once it has been cubed return it to the fridge until you're ready to use it. If the sauce does split remove it from the heat immediately and beat a tablespoon of the sauce in a cold bowl. Gradually add the rest of the sauce beating continuously until it is creamy again. Be sure to taste the sauce before serving. The acid and the butter should be balanced with neither overpowering the overall flavour.

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ANGELFISH WITH STEAMED ASPARAGUS       

and LIME BEURRE BLANC

Serves 4

40ml white wine vinegar

40ml dry white wine
2 whole black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon lime juice

2 teaspoons sliced spring onion
400g asparagus
4 angelfish fish fillets
olive oil 
salt
pepper

120g butter, cubed

Step 1.) Place the white wine vinegar, white wine, peppercorns, lime juice and spring onions in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Allow the mixture to boil until it has reduced to approximately 10ml (2 teaspoons).

Step 2.) While the vinegar mixture is boiling wash and trim the asparagus and steam until bright green and tender. This will take 5-6 minutes.

Step 3.) Drizzle the fish fillets with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and grill or pan fry for a few minutes on each side until just cooked and flaky.

Step 4.)  Finishing the sauce: once the liquid has reduced in step 1, take it off the heat and remove the spring onion pieces. Whisk in 2 cubes of chilled butter, and once melted return the saucepan to the stove on a very low heat. Gradually whisk the remaining butter into the sauce, one or two pieces at a time, only adding new pieces once the previous ones have almost melted. Be sure to whisk the sauce continuously and don't allow it to get too hot or the sauce will liquefy. Remove from the heat as soon as all the butter has been added. Season to taste with salt. Note: if the sauce is too tart for your liking you can always add more butter.

Step 5.) Season the steamed asparagus with some salt and plate along with the fish and beurre blanc. Serve immediately.

Back to Basics - White Sauce

I think this may have been the first recipe we covered in our school Home Economics class ... or was that scones? Either way, once you've mastered this easy sauce you can use it for a multitude of things! Handy, right? White sauce (also known as béchamel sauce) can be used in pasta and veggie dishes, soups, gravies and as a base for other sauces.

I've given you a basic recipe below, as well as some ideas for variations. 

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WHITE SAUCE

Makes about 280ml

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons plain flour

salt

250ml milk 

Step 1.) Melt the butter in a saucepan, then whisk in the flour to form a smooth paste. Allow the mixture to cook for a minute or two - this is known as a roux.

Step 2.) Remove the pan from the heat, add a pinch of salt then gradually whisk in the milk until you have a smooth mixture. Return the pan to the heat and continue to whisk until the sauce has thickened, this should only take a couple of minutes. 

And you're done - easy peasy! This recipe is for a medium white sauce, for a thinner sauce use just 1 tablespoon of butter and flour to 250ml milk.

Choices, choices! Here are some variations to the basic recipe:

Cheese sauce - once the sauce has thickened take it off the heat and stir in 50g grated cheese. A sharp cheddar works brilliantly. Keep stirring until the cheese has melted and you have a smooth sauce.

Use to make make macaroni cheese or cauliflower bake, or spoon over baked potatoes.

Mushroom sauce - Heat a dash of olive oil in your saucepan and add 1 finely chopped clove of garlic and 2 cups of thinly sliced button mushrooms (about 160g). Cook until the mushrooms are soft then take off the heat and set aside. Make your white sauce as normal and once thickened stir in the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes. Stir in a teaspoon of chopped parsley and season to taste.

Delicious on steak, burgers or chicken schnitzel.

Parsley sauce - stir 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley into your thickened white sauce and season to taste. 

Perfect for fish!