What really is a Caper??? - Blog Two in Seven Days

So, what a is this little thing called a caper...?

Well, according to Wikipedia, they come from the caper bush (how apt, given that Australia is full of 'bush'), a perennial winter-deciduous species that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers.

A caper is the pickled bud of this plant. The caper bush is well suited to Mediterranean countries and it just so happens that many parts of regional Victoria also offer similar climatic conditions. Yay for Australia - we really are so self sufficient!

The first caper I knew came in a jar, in very salty brined water. Nowadays, capers are available in a salt preserve which I think helps maintain their authentic flavour and offers more versatility.

You simply wash the little delights in running water to remove most of the salt preserve and then go about using them with anything from smoked salmon, baked fish or even in a rich tomato based puttanesca sauce. Puttanesca is said to be prepared in the style of prostitutes in Rome: deliberately robust in scent and hearty in flavour so as to attract clients. Sorry, hope that hasn't turned any of you off trying this dish....

Here's my tried and true recipe:

Spaghetti Puttanesca

500g spaghetti

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon dry chilli flakes

2 cans (800g) whole tomatoes, juice reserved, and crushed

200g seeded kalamata olives

8 anchovy fillets, chopped coarsely (perhaps try the white anchovy fillets, available at most good delicatessens)

1/3 cup rinsed drained capers

1/3 cup coarsely chopped parsley

2 tablespoons finely shredded fresh basil

Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water (uncovered) until just tender.

Heat oil in large frying pan and cook garlic, stirring until fragrant. Watch the heat here as the garlic can burn.

Add chilli and tomatoes, cook for around 5 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients and cook for a further 5 minutes until the sauce slightly thickens.

Add drained pasta and toss gently to combine.

This dish is relatively low in fat and kilojules so 'hoe in' while the capers are fresh and ready!

Warming the House this Winter.... - BLOG THREE in SEVEN DAYS

I was recently invited to write a guest blog for a friend who has a craft business Stylise.

I have wordsmithed it now and thought you might be interested in seeing the contents.

Crafty creating extends to all levels in our homes, even to the point where you can creatively clean. Don’t ask me how but some use creativity just to get through the vacuuming and the dusting. I think it involves music and the concept of exercising as you go. Why not, I say?? So long as you are seeing results, that's all that counts.
As a foodie, my creative outlet extends to the kitchen and the creation of a range of tasty morsels for every meal of the day, and a few in between. Goodness, I'm sounding a bit like Nigella Lawson eating my way through the day. However, I can assure you that I have NEVER felt the need for a midnight snack of freshly made bread and butter pudding as I saw her do on an episode not so long ago. I mean, please, really????
Warming the house with a toasty oven combined with the fresh smells of baked cakes, slices, scones, and puddings is my ideal way of spending a Sunday afternoon in winter. And doing it the simplest and tastiest way is what I'd like the share with you now. As I write these words, the lingering smell of caramelised butter and brown sugar hangs in the air and I know that what I've just cooked took such little time yet will give so much pleasure, served with a cup of tea of coffee and some good, easy conversation.
It's a recipe from my Mother's kitchen, and being a home economics teacher by profession, I know that it's tried and true. I've chosen this recipe for a number of reasons - it's easy (one saucepan wonder!), it has SIX ingredients (Suzie, place photo here) and its seasonal, something that I continually promote as my preferred way of eating. Walnuts are an autumn/winter crop therefore supply is fresh and plentiful at the moment. I wrote a blog about berries in the Summer and the abundant supply I found when visiting the High Country of Victoria. In the cooler months, the walnuts become the staple harvest of the farmers in this region and we are lucky to be able to source these here in Melbourne and further afield.

Date & Walnut Slice
125g butter
100g brown sugar
3/4 cup fresh walnuts, chopped
3/4 cup fresh dates, pitted and chopped
1 egg, well beaten
1 cup self raising flour

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and grease and line a lamington tin (28cm x 18cm).
In a medium sized saucepan, heat butter and brown sugar.
Stir continuously once the butter starts to melt to ensure the two ingredients mix well together and not stick or burn to the bottom of the saucepan.
Remove from heat once well combined and add dates.
Add walnuts and mix well again.
Let it stand for around 2 minutes before adding the egg (adding an egg to a hot mixture will cook the egg!! - nobody wants scrambled slice!!).
Add the flour and mix til all ingredients are well combined.
Spread across the lamington tin - I find that I prefer to not fill the entire tin so end up leaving one of the ends short by around an inch (make sense??). Don't be concerned that the mixture, when cooked will spread to the end of the tin, as it won't.
Cook in the oven for around 20 minutes - check after 15 minutes as the time can vary according to ovens. You should know by the delicious aroma wafting through your house and the lovely golden brown colour of the finished product.
Fresh out of the oven, the slice will be soft to touch but will firm up as it cools.
Once cool, spread with either lemon or orange icing.

I love this recipe and I hope you do too!
Happy cooking...and happy eating!

'Tis the Season - for Muffins

Hello!


It's been a while and safe to say, life has been incredibly hectic, unsettled and testing my resolve to just 'be' with the moments as they pan out before me.


One thing that has been constant through all of the chaos is my consumption of food. My appetite post transplant has been ravenous which, apparently is a good thing, and a result of one of my medications.


And for you, the reader, this is a good thing. I am in the kitchen almost daily cooking up and sampling new and wonderful things.


This blog will be the first of my personal challenge to prepare SEVEN BLOGS IN SEVEN DAYS.


It is dedicated not just to muffins, but to a rather unlikely and under-used ingredient that goes very well in this warming winter treat, wheterh you have it for breakfast or as an afternoon delight with coffee or tea......and that ingredient is the humble PERSIMMON.





Native to China, the Fuyu Persimmon is the most commonly available variety and is rich in health promoting nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants that are vital for optimum health.

Persimmons contain many health benefiting anti-oxidants as well as an anti-tumor compound.
Fresh permissions contain anti-oxidant compounds like vitamin-A, beta carotene, lycopene, along with others which function as protective scavengers against free radicals and play a role in ageing and various disease processes.

When I visited my local working week cafe (Eclipse) recently, they were serving up a muffin that wasn't just your standard offering, rather a seasonal offering containing persimmon and apple.

I mentioned on Facebook recently that I would share this muffin recipe with you as it's easy, tasty and a great way to sample persimmons, a fruit that I myself had not tried previously.


Persimmon and Apple Muffins
2 cups plain flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup caster sugar (you can now buy raw caster sugar which is less refined)
1 egg
250ml low fat milk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (I use rice bran oil)


Preheat oven to 200 C
Stir together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large bowl
Make a well in the centre.
In a small bowl, beat egg with a fork.
Stir in milk and oil.
Pour all at once into well and mix quickly and lightly WITH A FORK.
Do not overbeat. The mixture should be thick and lumpy - don't worry if there are some areas of flour not mixed in.
Now mix in your persimmon and apple. Use 1/2 cup of each. With the persimmon, use a semi soft fruit and peel the skin so that only the flesh is used.
Spoon the mixture into well greased muffin pans or alternatively, use the silicon muffin cups that are readily available on the market. Makes the whole process SOOOO easy.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until firm in the centre and golden brown on top.

Blog Number 1 down, 6 to go...... back to you tomorrow!