Melbourne Late Winter Garden

Another rainy Melbourne winter is almost at an end, the bulbs are in full bloom, the buds of the stone fruit are about to burst into colour and I am finally picking some winter vegies!!

We also  put in a little fairy garden for our daughter, which she is just loving.

The snow peas this winter year have been a winner. We are picking handfuls on a daily basis and they get consumed before we even get a chance to cook them. Our little one just points at them demanding that we get her "pea, pea". 

I put in a Japanese variety this year called Yukomo (Giant Snow Pea) along our fence line. This is the largest of all the snow pea varieties i have grown and they produce a beautiful purple flower. Both tasty and ornamental but be warned, you need to have a high trestle (my peas this year grew over 2 1/2 meters high) and you will need to tie them up, to protect from any winter winds. Worth it to see the fam enjoy them !

The broccoli I usually grow is an Italian variety called De Cicco, which I find has the sweetest flavour- a favourite of mine and a surprise to our dinner guests. Once we pick the main head, the side shoots then produce for a good 4 months later (what some people call broccolini).

Here are some photos just as the broccoli was forming a few weeks back;

We will shortly post a yummy home made broccoli pasta recipe, made with a friend of ours on yet another rainy day.

The winter greens have also taken off and we have picked some chinese Kale to use in stir fries. There's also cos lettuce and plenty of raddichio and Florence fennel salads. I just love the deep red colour of the raddichio (above) we grow. I an not sure of the variety as I got the seeds off my grandfather. 

We also grow a large Mustard Giant Red (mustard green)- not to eat it as it's way too spicy (like eating raw horseradish) but can be used to spice up salads. We have used it in a potato salad. But it is just beautiful over winter and so fast growing, easy to grow and self sows in abundance (beware!).

Homemade Pumpkin Ravioli with Currants and Pine Nuts

We have cheated here and used wonton wrappers from our local Asian grocery store instead of making our own pasta. It's a more than capable substitute.
The filling is made from roast pumpkin, and we served the ravioli with a buttery raisin and pine nut sauce.

Ravioli:
2 cups pumpkin
100g feta
1 egg, beaten
Packet of wonton wrappers
Fresh herbs (e.g. oregano, chives)

To make the ravioli, roast the pumpkin on a tray with a light drizzle of olive oil in a moderate oven until tender (don't let the pumpkin brown too much).
Mash the pumpkin and leave to cool. Finely crumble to feta and combine with the pumpkin. Season with pepper (we didn't add salt because of the feta). Add your fresh herbs.
Fill the wonton wrappers with 1/2tsp of filling. Brush the edges with a little beaten egg then pinch together to seal.
Cook the ravioli in a large pot of boiling water in batches. Boil for 4-5 minutes and gently remove with a slotted spoon and drain well.

To make the butter sauce:
Roast 1/4 cup of pine nuts in a large heavy based saucepan until the start to change colour, then remove them. Add 100g butter to the saucepan and fry until butter turns brown. Return the pine nuts and add 1/4 raisins to the butter. Spoon over the ravioli and eat whilst hot.

Beetroot, Orange and Feta Salad

Time to get cooking again after the winter hiatus, which was largely dominated by colds and flus and a memorable trip to Bairnsdale!

A few weeks ago we cooked up this delicious beetroot, orange and feta salad. We initially made it with lemons and limes and without the addition of the yoghurt-feta dressing. We found it a bit sour for our liking. We add feta to just about anything (probably because we buy it in 1kg buckets and we love salt). The end result is a fresh, earthy salad with Middle Eastern flavours.

1 bunch baby beetroots
1 clove garlic, finely crushed
Juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup rocket leaves
1/2 orange
1/2 lemon
100g feta
1 cup thick yoghurt

Roast beetroots in a medium oven for about 30 minutes until they are tender  (wrap them in foil first).

Whilst beetroot are cooking whisk garlic, lemon juice and olive oil to make a dressing. When beetroot are cooled enough to handle peel them, cut into large wedges and add to the dressing. Season well with salt and pepper.

Peel the citrus fruits and remove all membranes. Using a sharp knife carefully segment the fruit.

Mash the feta and whip it into the yogurt to make a thick dressing.

Arrange the rocket, beetroot and citrus fruits on a plate. Drizzle with the yoghurt dressing.

Broccoli and Cheddar Soup

The inspiration behind this soup came from a restuarant we ate at last weekend. We didn't even eat the soup there- it was just on the specials board. But I have been thinking about the soup all week (yep, life is pretty exciting for us).
The final product didn't disappoint. Creamy, rich and tasty, but you definately need lots of bitey cheddar cheese to add lots of flavour.


Broccoli and Cheddar Soup:
6 tbs butter
3 tbs plain flour
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
4 heads of broccoli (stems and florets seperated)
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
 6 cups chicken stock
2 cups of grated strong cheddar cheese

 Chop the broccoli stems into bite size pieces.
In half the butter fry the onion and broccoli stems for 4-5 minutes.
Add the garlic and fry for a further 2-3 minutes.
Add the chicken stock and boil until the stems are tender (about 15 minutes).
Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter and add it to the plain flour to make a thick paste.
Add the cream, milk and butter/flour paste into the soup, whisking to combine.
Add the broccoli florets (these are added now so they don't overcook and lose their colour).
Cook until tender (another 5-10 minutes).
Blend together either in a food processor or using a sick blender.
Add the cheddar cheese and stir to combine whilst still hot.

Walnut and Parsley Pesto

This is an autumn/ winter version of pesto and a little less full on in flavour than your usual basil and pine nut combination.

It also helped make a small dent in our parsley forest! This recipe actually makes about 2 cups of pesto, but it can be frozen by putting any unused portion into an ice cube tray and covering with cling wrap before putting in the freezer.

There are various versions around of the same thing- some with lemon rind, with or without garlic and cheese. Here's our version:

1 cup shelled walnuts
2 cups fresh parsley
1-2 cloves of garlic
100g pecorino cheese
Olive oil

Put all ingredients into a blender or food processor and add enough olive oil to achieve a wet consistency.

Chocolate and Almond Cake

This is a great simple chocolate cake, but the secret lies in the texture. The chocolate is processed to fine chunks, and leaves the cake really moist but also nice and chewy. 
We also ground our own almonds to make the almond meal, adding extra crunch.

Chocolate and Almond Cake:

200g unsalted butter
200g dark cooking chocolate
4 eggs, seperated
170g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
250g ground almonds (almond meal)

Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Grease and line a 24cm baking pan with non stick paper.
Melt butter and set aside to cool.
Process the chocolate in a food processor until finely chopped but still retaining a little texture.
Place egg yolks, sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl and beat until thick and creamy.
Fold in the chocolate, butter and almond meal.
In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
Gently fold in the chocolate mixture. Spoon into the prepared pan and smooth over the top.
Bake for 50- 60 minutes, or until just firm to the touch.
Leave to cool in the pan then serve dusted with cocoa.

Cauliflower Soup

Cream of anything soup sounds pretty daggy- like something that should come out of a packet.

This is a very simple and quick recipe and a great way to use up one of our favourite vegetables.  When we tried to get our daughter to taste the "cauliflower" recently she tried to sniff it, as if it were a flower. I thought this was very abstract of her! Unfortunately, she still refuses to eat any.

Cream of Cauliflower Soup:

25g Butter
1 1/2 tbs olive oil
2 brown onions, finely chopped
1/2 head of cauliflower, chopped
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 cup full cream milk
1/4 cup cream

Melt butter and olive oil together. Add the onions and cook gently for 2 minutes (don't let them brown up). Add the cauliflowe and fry for a further couple of minutes.

Add the stock and milk and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Puree the mixture in a blender or with a stick blender. Return to the pot and add the cream. Season with salt and pepper.

We added some crusty garlic bread to satisfy our carb cravings.