Calzone

I make these whenever I think pizza is getting a bit boring.

Make up your pizza dough as normal, I make mine in the bread maker.

Separate the dough as if you are making individual pizzas

Roll out each pizza thinly
Cover with tomato sauce and add topping, only place it in the centre
In this case it was ham, pineapple, mushroom and cheese.

Fold the pizza in half and seal the edges.

Brush or spray with olive oil place on a tray and bake at 180c until golden.

Cauliflower Curry

The idea for this dish came from Herbivorus, a great site.

Cut a  cauliflower into florets drizzle with olive oil and pepper, oven bake at 180c until caramelised. This is a great way to cook this vegetable it tastes really nice.

In a pan add olive oil and 2 diced onions
Add 4 diced garlic cloves
1 drained can of chickpeas
1tbs cumin
2tbs turmeric
2tsp cinnamon
2tbs fennel seed

Combine with water
When the chick peas soften add the cauliflower stir through and serve on a bed of rice.
Garnish with basil or coriander leaf.

Pad Thai

Never one of my favourites but it does make a quick an easy snack.

Cook the noodles in boiling water, drain and set aside.

Cut 1 Block of tofu into bite size pieces
Dice 4 Brown mushrooms
Dice 4 Oyster mushrooms
Slice 1 red chilli
Stir Fry until cooked
Add noodles and sauce

Serve on a plate and garnish with

One omelette thinly cut
Grind  a handful of peanuts
Thinly slice two shallots
Add one handful of fried shallots

Pesto and Tomato Pasta

Again a two pronged dish, a vegetarian option then cooked prawns added for the meat eaters.

Cook 400 gms of fettuccine.
Oven bake baby truss toms cut into half peppered and drizzled with olive oil.
Make up Pesto with basil leaves, parmesan, pine nuts and garlic with olive oil [(or buy it as I did) a recipe for pesto will come in posts to follow.]

Stir pesto through pasta with tomatoes. Garnish with basil and grated parmesan.

Cook prawns with Outback Cafe Seafood Sprinkle then combine with pasta mixture.

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Vege Burger

As the new lady in my life is a vegetarian, I am discovering all manner of things to cook not using meat. This is a burger made from eggplant.

Chop 1 eggplant into 2cm cubes leave the skin on
Cook in boiling salted water for about 12 minutes or until soft
Drain and mash to get water out
Combine with 200gms low fat cheese
1 Crushed and diced garlic clove
1 stale slice of bread shredded
Add bread crumbs and combine until you can form a patty
Oven bake bake 20mins at 180c

Lamb with Steamed Zucchini and Couscous

Zucchini
Cut a Zucchini in half lengthways and scoop out the flesh, dice
Dice one onion and saute
Add pine nuts and some cooked rice
Flavour with Allspice, salt, pepper, thyme, cardamon
Fill Zucchini and steam until tender

Couscous
Using instant couscous, add equal quantities of boiling water
Flavour with pesto
Add 1 tbs olive oil

Lamb
Pan fry the lamb topping with dry Chermoula  to flavour

Pan Fried Salmon with Roasted Eggplant

Eggplant
Cut the eggplant in half and remove the flesh with a spoon
Spray the eggplant with oil and set aside
Meanwhile dice one onion and lightly saute with the diced flesh of the eggplant
Add pine nuts and several tablespoons of cooked rice.
Fill the eggplant shells with the fillings
Cover with grated cheese
Oven bake until Golden brown

Salmon
Take a nice fillet of Salmon and pin bone it
That is with your finger run alone the flesh and find any bones left in the fish
Remove with tweezers
Heat some oil in a fry pan
Place the fish skin side down until the skin becomes crisp
Then turn to complete the cooking

To serve add Horseradish Cream which goes very nicely with Salmon