simple, refreshing kaffir limeade

simple, refreshing kaffir limeade.

It's the end of February, and those of us in Melbourne, Australia, are flitting between hot, sweltering stretches and cool, wet episodes. You might say it almost feels tropical.

So let's talk about kaffir limes today. You may be more familiar with kaffir lime leaves, which was featured in this blog last year (see my chilli kaffir tamarind tofu recipe here). The kaffir lime fruit, however, while edible, seems to fall by the wayside and go largely unnoticed, unloved.

Kaffir limes have an interestingly rough, squiggly, bumpy skin, the zest of which can be used. The ones I buy at the markets are usually the size of golf balls. They tend to have many seeds, and yield only a small quantity of rich, yellow juice. The taste is sharp, almost pungent and herbaceous, which may need some getting used to. Due to its distinctiveness, I prefer to use it lightly, and pair it with ingredients that take its edge off a little, while still showcasing its unique flavour.

I sneakily added it to my jalapeno sour cream dip/spread a while back, and it works well there because it is but a squeeze of juice, buried within the spicy, tangy dip, just enough to impart a hint of exotic.

to me, kaffir limes look like little round puzzle balls, or mini green brains.

In this easy recipe, however, kaffir limes are the star of the show, mellowed only with honey, water and ice. The honey softens the sharpness of the kaffir limes, and you can use as little or as much water and ice to dilute and cool as you see fit.


simple, refreshing kaffir limeade (serves 1)

1 kaffir lime (yields about 1 tablespoon kaffir lime juice)
1 tablespoon honey, or, to make it vegan, maple syrup (I used raw honey)
1 cup water
1 small handful ice cubes

Stir together kaffir lime juice, honey, and water until all is mixed/dissolved.
Add a few ice cubes, stir again, and serve.

P.S. Feel free to adjust the ingredient quantities to suit your taste buds!

try this easy kaffir lime fruit recipe and make yourself some kaffir limeade!

Click here to read the rest of the post!

spinach melon cashew smoothie (raw & vegan)

spinach melon cashew milk smoothie

February is proving to be a hip and happenin' month with celebrations galore. The two-week extravaganza that is Chinese New Year started on the 10th, for which I'll hopefully create a post to follow this one, and then there's Valentine's Day on the 14th, which likely isn't going to make an appearance on my blog this year, just because, well, I haven't gotten around to preparing anything. Ha!

But despite being a bit lackadaisical in some aspects these days, all's not lost. I'm happy to report that, inspired by my experimental mini-detox, some healthy habits have been kick-started and they are still going strong. There hasn't been a drastic change to my meals - I'm mostly an "everything in moderation" kind of girl, and I don't really "do" diets - but I've been increasing my efforts to include more fresh fruits and vegetables in my regular routine, and I do this by whizzing up a breakfast smoothie every morning, and sometimes, later in the day, too.

So today I'm sharing the recipe for this spinach melon cashew smoothie, which is an accidental favourite from my recent little raw weekend adventure. I have to confess that these days I fling myself into green smoothies with wild abandon, having found out that they aren't as scary as they may seem, and can actually taste pretty fabulous with the right combination and ratio of ingredients. I am also enjoying nut smoothies - I've been using soaked, softened cashews quite often to add a natural milkiness to vegan smoothies and make them more filling.

As a result, we have this green nut smoothie, and here's how it works, ever so nicely.

spinach melon cashew smoothie.

spinach melon cashew milk smoothie  (serves 1)

1/4 cup cashews, soaked 3+ hours or overnight, then drained (I used raw cashews)
1 date, pitted (optional, I used a medjool date)
3/4 cup water, + more if required
1 cup rockmelon/cantaloupe flesh (150g / 1/3lb, or approx. 1/8 of a melon - honeydew is a good substitute)
1/2 cup firmly packed baby spinach, or a rough handful
4 ice cubes*

Whiz cashews, date and water together until smooth (or as smooth as you can get it with your blender. This will form the cashew milk base for the smoothie.
Add rockmelon/cantaloupe chunks, spinach and ice cubes, and whiz again until it all breaks down into a thick, slushy mix. Pour and serve immediately. Drink and feel delightful.

*Sometimes I use frozen melon chunks for this smoothie (awesome!), in which case I omit the ice cubes.

Click here to read the rest of the post!

a mini-detox? going raw for one day (almost two)!

Green smoothies, green smoothies galore!

I've never been the dieting type. But when Simon's housemate, Georgina, bought Anya Ladra's book, Raw Food Detox, recently, and suggested we embark on a weekend of clean eating with its guidance, I thought it was a fabulous idea.

Raw Food Detox - a cookbook by Anya Ladra of Raw Fairies.

Let's face it, while I like to think I eat healthier than the average person, I know very well that I can do with more fruits and vegetables in my diet. And I realise the concept of a detox is not for everyone, but I thought it would be an interesting experience, and kind of exciting. After all, even if you don't buy into the concept of a cleansing diet, you can still see this as a not-too-extreme experiment that puts more fresh, wholesome food in your body, which surely is a good thing.

Going with a more relaxed approach, we did not truly follow any of the detox programs in the book, but we did try a few recipes, plus some wildcards of our own. Here's a time line of my adventure!

---

Friday night:

We have a naughty "last supper" of Sarawak laksa (so good!) and follow up with a very refreshing Melon and Banana smoothie with Parsley, made faithfully according to Anya's recipe to atone for our sins.

---

Saturday morning:

I somehow wake up earlier than everyone else in the morning. I have a spicy herbal tea, which is technically not raw, but seems to be embraced as a "good cheat" by many raw foodists, except for the strictest ones.

After everyone awakens, we all enjoy some detox lemonade together (similar to the one from the book, but with mint added). Awhile later, we create our own spinach melon cashew milk smoothie, which is nutty, fruity, and all-round amazing - recipe to come!

Spinach melon cashew smoothie.

Saturday afternoon:

Feeling peckish, I whiz up a Carrot and Lemon juice with Omega-3 oils (I used evening primrose), also from the book, then follow up with a few snacks - a peach, a slice of watermelon, a couple of medjool dates, and a handful of raw hazelnuts. I feel good.

Carrot juice with citrus and good oils.

Saturday evening:

I start to feel sleepy and hazy. Georgina makes us a delicious ceviche - a bit of a cheeky dish outside the realms of Anya's vegan detox book, but hey, at least it's still raw! After eating this, I feel totally rejuvenated - perhaps my previous tiredness was merely a sign of hunger, or a yearning for protein. Brimming with energy, we all go for a walk with the dogs.

Ceviche.

Upon returning from the walk, we threw a few things together to whip up a cacao hazelnut shake. The thoughts are mixed on this one but it is still mostly satisfying.

Later in the night, I graze on celery, then wrap up with more herbal tea, a soothing one this time, to induce a sweet slumber.

Cacao hazelnut shake

---

Sunday morning:

I don't plan on being as disciplined today, as I have to work, but I still want to try my best to continue with this health kick, particularly as I feel really bright and alert today (placebo effect or not, it's unusual for a Sunday morning in the office, trust me), which I take as a sign I have been doing something right. I brew myself some rosemary tea for breakfast, then tuck into lovely ceviche leftovers from last night.

Rosemary tea.

Sunday afternoon:

I snack on medjool dates, then quickly pop out to South Melbourne Market, get myself a dozen fresh oysters and a lime, duck back in to the office, and enjoy a scintillating seafood spread at my desk. Oh yeah. Probably shouldn't be eating all these ocean delights if this is to be a proper detox, but hey...

Fresh oysters.

Sunday evening:

After work, I go to Simon's place again, and concoct a green smoothie with watermelon, banana, lime and spinach. I also finally give in to cooked food, baking a comfortingly cheesy frittata for dinner - I will be sharing the recipe for this eventually, too. We also recharge ourselves with a carrot-lemon-celery juice.

Lime-spinach-banana-watermelon smoothie.

---

Conclusions:

This self-structured mini raw detox has been a really excellent experience for me. I would be keen to do this again, and I want to find a way to incorporate more raw, fresh produce, especially vegetables, in a practical manner to my everyday life.

---

Aftermath:

Inspired by my detox weekend, I've started blending fruit and vegetable juices/smoothies in the morning for breakfast, and I hope this shall become a habit. They really seem to wake me up and invigorate me for the day ahead, so that should be enough incentive to spur me on.

---

Have you ever gone on a "detox" or a similar challenge to eat and drink only clean / raw / wholesome / minimally or non-processed foods? I'd love to hear about it!

Click here to read the rest of the post!

smoked salmon sandwiches + jalapeno sour cream

jalapeno sour cream, smoked salmon, and cucumber sandwiches for a picnic in summer.

There aren't many things better than a potluck picnic on a lovely summer's day, wouldn't you agree?

I've never been much of a social butterfly, however, so I thank my housemate, Kathy, for initiating this idea and making it happen.

January has been, for me, a month of working 11-hour days, so when I knew I could be free for this picnic on a Saturday forecast to be slightly cloudy, mostly sunny, and intermittently breezy, I jumped at the chance.

It was a glorious day, filled with good food, drinks, and company. An array of dishes were sampled. New friends were made. It was joyous. It was therapeutic. It was just what I needed.

smoked salmon sandwiches with cucumber and jalapeno sour cream.

This was what I brought to the party. A refreshingly tangy, spicy, savoury combination of light rye sour dough, chive-jalapeno sour cream spread, smoked salmon, and cucumber. Embrace the flavour.

smoked salmon sandwiches with cucumber and jalapeno sour cream

for the jalapeno sour cream:

250ml sour cream or light sour cream (8oz)
10g chives, chopped (2 tablespoons) - optional, or substitute with another seafood-friendly herb like dill
1 jalapeno pepper (5cm / 2 inches), chopped into rings, then quartered, seeds included if you like it spicy
15ml lime juice (1 tablespoon, or half a lime's worth)

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container. This may be made the night before and kept chilled in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Tip: This jalapeno sour cream can be used not only as a spread, but also a dip or a salad dressing!
P.S. If not complementing it with a salty ingredient (as I did with smoked salmon here), you may want to add a pinch of salt.

other ingredients for the sandwiches:

200g smoked salmon (7oz), roughly torn
1 continental cucumber or other cucumber (go with 2 if using small cucumbers), sliced
1 loaf bread (I used a light rye sourdough)

to assemble a sandwich:

Spread sour cream mixture on each slice of bread. Top with pieces of smoked salmon and cucumber, then another slice of bread. Slice into triangles, to easily share amongst a crowd, or for a smaller gathering, forget about daintiness and tuck into a full-sized sandwich.
Also: I don't remove the bread crusts, because I LOVE them.
And if you're using a fairly soft bread, don't assemble too early in advance, lest they become soggy.

Note: Ingredients may not match up exactly for a precise number of sandwiches - it depends on how generously you allocate the individual elements. However, each of the ingredients are so versatile in their own right, it doesn't matter if you have leftovers.

Click here to read the rest of the post!

a humble tomato celery mince stew

A simple mince stew, enriched with tomatoes and celery.

Happy new year, everyone!

I apologise for being somewhat missing in action lately. Work is still ridiculous at the moment so my posting schedule will likely be quite erratic for the next few weeks. I do hope you'll still remember to pop in every now and then, regardless!

When work is busy, I tend to eat quite takeaway more often, and while I do still cook, creativity in the kitchen will just have to wait, even on the weekends. I'm not thinking about unusual combinations or interesting juxtapositions, just something that I can throw together without much thought.

So we have this very humble mince, tomato and celery stew here, which I cooked up on New Year's Day. A couple of tomatoes and a handful of mince meat (pork, chicken, lamb, beef - it's up to you) are simmered together in some water, and as everything disintegrates and thickens, a few stalks of chopped celery is added, followed by a sprinkle of mixed dried herbs, salt and black pepper, and cooked just a little bit longer, until the celery mellows a little, while still retaining a crunch. And if you love your pepper, as I do, serve it with an extra grinding on top.

And that's it. Ready to serve.

A humble tomato-mince-celery stew.

Since making this stew, I've managed to create a couple of blog-worthy recipes amidst all the busyness, so let's stick around and see if I can get those posts up in the next week or so.

How has your January been so far?

Click here to read the rest of the post!

pimm's lemon jasmine banana smoothie-cocktail (vegan, alcoholic, and stupendously delicious)

I made this, one experimental morning, and fell in love instantly. Like a fruity, floral breath of fresh air, it scintillated my senses and seduced my soul.

A spiked smoothie to leave me invigorated and glowing with health and happiness... in the short time since the idea was born, I've made this many times over, and it shall, if all goes according to plan, accompany me as I say goodbye to 2012, and ring in 2013.

pimm's lemon jasmine banana cocktail-smoothie.

So at this moment, your mind is either running through all sorts of gleeful alcoholic smoothie possibilities or you're thinking, "This lady be crazy."

And before you start to worry... no, I'm not becoming an alcoholic. In fact, one of the reasons this breakfast cocktail came about was because I still had nearly a full bottle of the Pimm's No. 1 that I purchased for last year's New Year's celebrations. Yeah, I wasn't kidding in that post when I said I was bad at drinking.

Honestly, though, if you want to start your celebrations early, like, oh, I don't know - first thing in the morning - I can think of nothing better than this smoothie, a thrillingly clean, joyful cocktail of lemon, banana and jasmine green tea, with splashes of liqueur. (But please, don't drink and drive. Or do anything potentially precarious, for that matter.)

I used Pimm's No.1 here, which is nice and subtle, but I imagine this will also go well with a coconut liqueur, a lychee liqueur, or a ginger liqueur, for example, depending on the flavour profile that delights you. I opted for just 30ml (1 fl.oz) of alcohol, which is barely discernible, but you can probably bump that up a little, depending on the type of liqueur you use, how intensely boozy you prefer it to be, and what you plan to be doing for the rest of the day...

(By the way, if you're trying to behave and abstain, I've even made a mocktail version without any alcohol whatsoever, and it tasted just as glorious, let that be known.)

A little prep in advance is required for this cocktail-smoothie recipe, but it's all tremendously easy. The banana needs to be peeled, the flesh broken into chunks and frozen. The jasmine green tea, too, is brewed with warm (but not boiling hot) water, then left to steep and cool. This is all preferably done overnight; however, I've also made this with only a few hours' notice, with the encouragement of friends, and the help of a few ice cubes. It was so well-received that I couldn't make enough: it was love at first taste for them, too.

Now, without further ado, here's the recipe. Be warned: it is dangerously easy to drink.

a healthy cocktail with lemon juice, jasmine tea, frozen banana, and pimm's no.1.

lemon jasmine banana smoothie-cocktail
(recipe makes 1, multiply to spread the happiness)

120ml brewed jasmine green tea (4 fl.oz / 1/2 cup), chilled
1 small ripe banana of about 12cm/5", flesh chopped and frozen
30ml lemon juice (1 fl.oz / 2 tablespoons / half a lemon's worth)
30ml Pimm's No. 1, or some other suitably complementary liqueur (1 fl.oz / 2 tablespoons)
grated lemon zest and/or nutmeg, to garnish (optional)

Blend jasmine green tea, frozen banana chunks, lemon juice and Pimm's No.1 (or other liqueur of your choice) together until smooth. Pour into glasses, and garnish with a little lemon zest or nutmeg, if you like. Serve immediately while it's deliciously cold.

Click here to read the rest of the post!

a quiet christmas

So... it's Christmas by myself.

Simon is in Perth, visiting family. Thanks to work, I have to remain in Melbourne. Curses!

Not to worry, though, we already had a mini celebration before he flew off. A very small affair, just the two of us, with puff pastry mince pies and vanilla ice cream.

puff pastry mince pies with pine sugar, by Heston Blumenthal for Waitrose.

The mince pies are by Heston for Waitrose, and they got into my radar thanks to Sarah's tweets about them. I promptly found them stocked at my local Coles supermarket and bought a box to try.

On the packaging it says, "The magic of these mince pies is the rich mincemeat, which incorporates apple puree, lemon curd and rose water. Warm in the oven and then sprinkle with pine sugar for a real festive twist."

While it wasn't as luxuriously complex as I imagined (based on that description), they were still scrumptious and quite the treat - especially with that delightfully flaky puff pastry and the intriguing pine-infused sugar. We polished it all off in no time at all.

On Christmas Eve, I worked overtime and on my way home, I popped in to my local Chinese, Pacific Seafood BBQ House (210 Toorak Road, South Yarra) and treated myself to takeaway.

Hello, roast duck on rice!

takeaway - roast duck on rice, from Pacific Seafood BBQ House.

And that's about it for my Christmas celebrations. It's Christmas evening as I post this, and I haven't really done much today, but it has been peaceful and relaxing. And Simon will be back in a few days, hurrah!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays, everyone!

Click here to read the rest of the post!

honey sage pistachio balls / energy bites

Honey sage pistachio balls. Sweet, nutty energy bites.

Christmas is coming, and while I'm not a traditionalist, I do inevitably get caught up in the excitement that comes with the abundance of edible treats, this time of the year.

This is also the time of the year when I try to challenge myself with making treats that evoke Christmas (see here for last year's achievement). If you think you've been seeing a lot of green in my posts this month, well, it's not a coincidence.

Let's talk about energy balls today. I pop over to Hannah's blog at Wayfaring Chocolate quite frequently, and I am often envious of the variety of balls in her queenly repertoire. However, not having a food processor, I've never made my own.

Recently, I finally thought, to hell with that - I am doing this, even if I have to use a mortar and pestle!

So that's what I did.

Yes, you may call me Superwoman.

Making energy balls without a food processor, the old-fashioned way - with a mortar and pestle.

Thanks to my medieval methods, I made only a small portion, so feel free to multiply the recipe as you see fit. Feel free, too, to adapt the recipe to suit your needs. For example, you can make it a vegan recipe by using maple syrup, brown rice syrup, or agave nectar instead of honey. You can make it a raw recipe, too, by not baking the sage, using raw pistachios - no toasting, and using raw honey or agave. Oh, and if you have a food processor, you can just whiz everything together and cut down on the manual labour.

All that aside, let me just say I am now totally a homemade energy ball convert. Even with the extra work I had to do - which wasn't that difficult, really - I felt it was worth it. So wholesome. So delicious. And in the end, even with all the energy I exerted into making my energy balls, I think they lived up to their namesake and replenished me right back, with more to spare.

Plus, they're festive enough for a Christmas connection, all glistening green with speckles of red!

Honey sage pistachio energy bites.

honey sage pistachio energy balls with a mortar and pestle
(makes about 2 dozen marble-sized balls)
(I made this in 2 batches, as my mortar is modestly-sized.)

20 large fresh sage leaves
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, toasted
pinch of salt (not required if using pistachios that have already been lightly salted)
1 tablespoon honey (approximate, to be added in gradually and with care)

Preheat oven to 100ºC or 210ºF fan-forced (120ºC or 250ºF conventional).
Lay out sage leaves on a baking sheet, and bake in the oven for 5 minutes or until dry and crispy.
While the sage is roasting in the oven, toast the pistachios in a pan, stirring frequently, until they release a pleasant nutty aroma.
Crumble dried sage leaves with a mortar and pestle, picking out any tough stems that did not break down.
Add the toasted pistachios and continue pounding, crushing and grinding into fine, loose grains.
Sprinkle in a pinch of salt. Skip this step if the pistachios are already salted.
Add in honey, a little at a time, stirring and pressing the mixture with the pestle to check if the consistency might be ready for rolling. If in doubt, stop adding the honey and attempt the rolling earlier - you can always add more honey later, if you need to. Anyway, you can see that mine turned out quite shiny and moist - I could probably have used less honey, but it's all good!
So when you break off a small chunk and it rolls quite smoothly without giving you any trouble (e.g. cracking, falling apart), go forth and merrily roll those balls.

I shared these honey sage pistachio energy balls with Simon and we finished it within the day, but I would hazard a guess that they could keep quite nicely for a few days, covered, at room temperature, or a bit longer if you store them in the fridge.

Have fun, and enjoy!

Click here to read the rest of the post!