Group me in

Last night we dined at the Essence on Exhibition restaurant.

We had a group on voucher & it was for a seafood platter:

We had a decent selection of seafood, calamari being one of the best I've eaten. The restaurant is located within the Marriot hotel and most people, including myself, would pass it by unless I was staying at the Marriot... however it turned out to be an awesome deal & well worth the voucher price.

Two new Paleo meals that will be on my menu

Ingredients
Chicken:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons taco seasoning (store-bought or your own mix)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter
Dressing:
3/4 cup ranch dressing (bottled is fine)
1/4 cup salsa (as spicy as you'd like)
3 tablespoons finely minced fresh cilantro
Salad:
2 ears corn, shucked
1 large head or 2 regular heads green leaf lettuce, shredded thin
3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup grated pepper-jack cheese
2 avocados, diced
3 green onions, sliced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
Tortilla chips of your choice (flavored or not), crushed slightly, for topping salad
Directions
For the chicken: Generously sprinkle both sides of the breasts with the taco seasoning. Heat the oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken on both sides until deep golden brown on the outside and done in the middle (or to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F), about 4 minutes per side. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

For the dressing: While the chicken is cooking, pour the ranch dressing into a bowl. Add the salsa and cilantro and stir to combine.

For the salad: Next, place the ears of corn in the skillet you used to cook the chicken and roll them around so that the flavorful oil/butter mixture coats the corn. Grill on a grill pan or cook in a separate skillet until the corn is still crisp but has color on the outside. Slice off the kernels with a sharp knife and set aside. Dice the chicken into cubes.

On a platter, layer the shredded lettuce, diced chicken, tomatoes, cheese, corn, avocados, green onions, cilantro and crushed chips. Drizzle the dressing all over the top, saving some to serve on the side if you'd like. Serve the salad in individual bowls.


                       SATARAS & Paleo Almond bread YUM!

                                      Gahhh i am so excited that i found a PALEO bread recipe.

Paleo Bread recipe:

Ingredients:

2 cups almond flour (store bought or homemade)
6 ounces soft goat cheese (plain or a garlic & herb variety)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup shredded raw goat cheddar, or other cheese of choice
3 whole eggs (flax eggs may work)
3 Tablespoons melted butter
1 Tablespoon minced onion

Sea salt, for topping
Butter, for greasing pan

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F, and grease a 9″ x 13″ baking dish with butter. In a medium bowl, stir together all of the ingredients until a uniform batter is achieved. Transfer the batter to the greased baking dish, and use a spatula to spread the batter evenly to the edges. Top with a sprinkling of sea salt, and any other herbs you might enjoy. (Thinly sliced red onion or rosemary would be perfect!)

Bake at 375F for about 30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

Sataras:

Introduction

A healthy and flavorful Mediterranean side dish.

Number of Servings: 4

Ingredients

2 - Yellow Bell Peppers
2 - Orange Bell Peppers
3 - Red Bell Peppers
3 - Plum Tomatoes
1 - Medium Onion (yellow or white)
2 tsp - sugar
1 tbsp - Vegeta 
2 tbsp - Olive oil

Tips

Don't let all of the juice to evaporate, you want it to have a slight sauce consistency.
Feel free to use more or less of different colors of bell peppers.
Use more or less of the sugar and vegeta seasoning as to your likening.

Directions

Cut all the peppers into 1-inch chunks.
Dice the tomatoes.
Slice the onion length-wise
Heat the 2 tbsp of oil in a sauce pan. Add the onions and peppers together and saute until soft. Add the tomatoes, sugar, and vegeta seasoning and cook until the tomatoes have released their juices and has almost evaporated.

Serving Size: About 4-5 servings

Number of Servings: 4

Punjene Paprike Corba / Stuffed peppers stew

I made a balkan dish a few posts ago , "stuffed peppers"/ punjene paprike... and now I made the stew/soup version. Its more like a stew then a soup I would say.. it has just enough sauce for you to dip some deliciously crunchy bread in.. but not runny enough to call it a soup. Everyone knows that the best part of Punjene Paprike is the runny gooey deliciousness once you crack that pepper open and dig in with some crusty bread... well this recipe makes that all the more enjoyable.

Step 1

step 2

and final product:

                   This was so delicious and I am very very picky when it comes to mince meat dishes.

I think my Cave Man will be a huge fan of this dish..and i can see myself making it again.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Yield: About 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 small yellow onion chopped (1 cup)
• 3/4 cup chopped red bell pepper (a little over 1/2 of a medium)
• 3/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 (14.5 oz) cans petite diced tomatoes
• 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14.5) can beef broth
• 2 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1 cup uncooked long grain white or brown rice (I've tried and like both)
• Cheddar or mozzarella cheese, for serving (optional)

Directions

• In a large pot heat 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat, once hot add beef to pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally while breaking up beef, until browned. Drain beef and pour onto a plate lined with paper towels, set aside.
• Heat remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil in pot then add onions, red bell pepper, green bell pepper and saute 3 minutes, then add garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Pour in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth and add parsley, basil, oregano and cooked beef, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring just to a light boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes.
• While soup simmers, prepare rice according to directions listed on package, then once soup is done simmering stir in desired amount of cooked rice into soup*. Serve warm topped with optional cheese and garnish with fresh parsley.
• *For a thinner soup don't add all of the rice and for a thicker heartier soup add it all. Also, if you plan on having it for leftovers the next day then don't add the rice to the pot of soup, just add it to each individual bowl, then reserve the rice in a separate container in refrigerator to add to the soup the next day (otherwise it would turn into mush).
• Recipe Source: inspired by this recipe on allrecipes

Dinner @ munich brauhaus

Last night I discovered Munich Brauhaus, I will be going back for sure.

The atmosphere is awesome, live music, quirky waiters dressed in authentic German uniforms but most importantly, an amazing collection of German beers.

The menu is also varied with plenty of options, but i couldn't go past a German favourite:

mmm so good, the Käse Kransky

 !!!! The gravy was awesome.

Check out their gallery & menu

Happy New Year!

Ahh, it's been like a month since Ive posted anything, but I've been busy. Planning the big move into our little Cave & shopping.

Louise and I are still doing our (almost weekly) cook offs and now I am getting much better at them. Woohoo.

 I've been too lazy to photograph everything but the last meal made was garlic prawns with garlic spinach and potato patties.

                    I love how with this recipe i was able to sneak in a fair bit of spinach into the patties.

INGREDIENTS

• 1-pound potatoes (about 4 medium-sized potatoes), boiled, peeled and quartered
• ¼ cup milk
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 bag (8 to 10 ounces) baby spinach
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
• 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 cups panko crumbs
• ¼ cup olive oil, for frying (add more as needed)

Optional

• Yogurt
• Sour Cream
• Soy Sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine prepared potatoes and milk in a large mixing bowl; using a potato masher, mash the potatoes until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
3. Add chopped onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until translucent.
4. Add spinach and garlic to skillet; season with salt and pepper and continue to cook for 2 more minutes, or until spinach is wilted.
5. Remove from heat and add spinach mixture to the potatoes.
6. Stir in cheese and lemon juice.
7. Add egg and panko/bread crumbs; stir until thoroughly combined and smooth.
8. Shape the mixture into patties.
9. Heat olive oil in a large skillet.
10. Working in batches, fry each patty on both sides until golden brown; about 3 to 4 minutes per side.
11. Transfer potato patties to a paper towel–lined plate.
12. Serve with yogurt, sour cream, soy sauce, etc...

New Years Eve was better this year then last year.. possibly because i feel like there is so much happening for me in 2015.. the cave, the trips and all that glorious leave from work... or possibly because we were close enough to see the fire works, but far enough to avoid the busy crowds. Albert Park Lake, Cheese platters and wine.

Polenta & Herb Crusted Burramundi , roasted potatos

The Herb Crusted Burramundi with roasted potatoes and veg, super easy and so yum!

•  100g instant polenta
•  Grated zest of 2 lemons, plus lemon wedges to serve
•  2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh herbs (such as chives and parsley)
•  2 garlic cloves, crushed
•  2 eggs, beaten
•  4 x 180g skinless barramundi fillets (or use other firm white fish)
•  1/3 cup (80ml) olive oil
•  300g grape tomatoes
•  300g flat beans, sliced on an angle
•  Lemon wedges, to serve
• Source for recipe 
• 
  
• I added Vegeta, Italian herbs and chives for taste into my polenta mix.
•  

Olive Bread & Potato Soup ( Krompir Juha / Supa)

Louise and I made olive bread(rec here) and it was so very delicious and Louise suggested I use snap seed as I was complaining to her that my photos are lame and not blog worthy.. oh well.  These aren't that much better but who cares... look at the delicousness

My olive bread 

Louises Olive bread

My potato soup

(I don't have Louise's picture of it but I'm sure it looked similar)

Punjene Paprike - stuffed peppers - Balkan dish

Louise and I did another challenge, this time we made Punjene Paprike / Stuffed Peppers.

This is a traditional Balkan dish recipe here. Except this recipe is WRONG and the sauce needs to be doubled for it to work.

 I also cooked my meat first,  added the cooked rice and other seasonings, combined onion and garlic .. then i filled my peppers. I sealed them with tomato slices before placing them in the sauce.

Mine!

Louise.

IT WAS AMAZING

Next up, its my turn to pick a dish. Wait till she see's what I have in store for her.

Challenge update

Louise and I have done:
Roasted Cauliflower, Tomato and Goat Cheese Casserole

See my less glamours version below (still turned out amazingly yummy)

I decided to add 2 different types of cheese to give it a bit more taste and I'm glad I did. Goats cheese will not bind the ingredients as well. 

This is definitely going on my list of Paleo meals as its basically veggies and cheese.

and my version:

Paleo carrot cake

To travel is to live

Remember this post : Travel blues

Well, I did something about it these blues and we booked an amazing trip for next year, which I will no doubt blog all about once the planning starts.

We will depart Melbourne in July and head for Japan. From Japan I will head to Europe where we will spend the majority of the trip and then from Europe we will go to Singapore and then back home.
Choice of stop overs did take a bit of time deciding, I was considering Dubai, but I have decided to leave Dubai for next time as its a more common and much easier stop over...and lets face it Japan is pretty awesome!

As it stands so far we have booked:

                                                                           Tokyo

Beautiful Zurich. We will no doubt visit the swiss alps, but more on that at a later stage.

      

Prague

        

Vienna

        

Singapore

Watch this space though, because this is only the surface of whats yet to come.

I am currently in the process of organising Tokyo so I will post more about that later :)

Food glorious food

Still living.. but busy with food glorious food.

Louise will kill me that I am blogging about her if she ever finds out but we have been having cook offs and I've been so busy cooking.
Some of our meals include: (excuse the dodgy photos)

                                                            Our Quinoa dishes

Polish sausage pasta

Chard rolls

I made garlic and corn bread :) (Louise didn't know!)

Stuffed chicken rolls

We also made cinnamon rolls and next weekend we have a 3 course cook off.. stay tuned :)

Mexican

                          Im always looking for someplace new to indulge in my love of food.
           
                            This weekend  we attempted a 9 course Mexican Degustation at El Sabor.
                                                      (and no this is not a sponsored post)

                                                      The food was simple but delicious

Don't forget the Sangria!

                                                  At this point, i got too full to take photos.

The verdict is, I highly recommend for those who like Mexican and are looking for a cosy joint with nice music and pleasant staff. The best part was the last course, Churros !!

Whats for dinner?

One of the challenges of following the paleo diet is introducing variety.   Carbs are not allowed on the Paleo diet..that's right, no rice, no pasta, no bread and no pizza.  We eat this way from Monday-Thursday to maintain optimum health.

So this week, i experimented with cauliflower. One recipe, 3 different ways

                                         I made cauliflower pizza crust this week, finally... recipe (link)

It turned out awesome. I decided to make a healthy version with veggies and an less healthy cheesy version. Cauliflower pizza works and the crust ends up being nice and hard/crunchy and not only that, it's much much much healthier then consuming carb loaded pizza dough :)

                                                         Cauliflower mash with chives

                Made the same way as the crust but with added oils and cheese for cream factor. The potato alternative and the chives take a bit away from the cauliflower taste !

Cauliflower rice :)

Cave Living

Cave progress:

She is officially locked up.

The weekend was busy but now I have a better idea of what the cave living area will look like and that my friend is super exciting. I'll talk you through it.

It started off harmlessly with wine & dinner on a friday night..

Cave man hunted the fish himself.

I was too busy to blog about it but earlier in the week purchased our couch (see pic below)

                                      except our couch/chaise is actually a beige colour.. similar to that rug. I know, I'm already having heart palpitations at the thought of someone spilling wine/coffee over it but never fear, 5 year warranty on all stains and smells is here :)

 Naturally, the next day we were on a hunt for a living room coffee table and entertainment unit. I have thought about my colour shame a lot and have decided to keep it light and airy. Our home will be full of light woods, light oaky floors, light kitchen...and i wanted some contrast so we finally agreed on *drum roll*

This.

It's a nice rustic timber with metal details as handles.

It will go nicely with the lamp I had purchased earlier in the year

I knew from the moment I laid eyes on this lamp that it would be mine.

We started talking about the rug but couldn't agree on a shade so we decided to compromise. The decision is yet to come!

On Sunday afternoon , the Caveman and I went to the beach as it was finally nice and sunny in Melbourne. See proof below:

 I know, I found it hard to believe as well. We did a good 5km and I decided that as of tomorrow (today), my 4 hour body diet resumes.  I just feel much more energetic and healthier NOT eating carbs and sugar .. more to come on this topic in the future