Pisang Goreng (Fried Banana)

When I was living in Indonesia Pisang Goreng was one of my favourite treats.
I was so thrilled when a friend sent me the recipe. I tried it out and it's perfect. It takes a little bother but if you have a wok, it should be easier.

Pisang Goreng

1 1/4 cups flour
2 TBSP sugar
1/4 TBSP Vanilla powder
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 TBSP butter, melted
1 tsp rum flavouring
4 ripe bananas
2 cups oil for frying

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and vanilla.
Make a well in the center, and pour in milk, egg, melted buter and rum flavouring.
Mix until smooth. Fold in banana slices until evenly coated.
Heat oil in a wok or deep-fryer to 190 degC.
Drop banana mixture by tablespoon into hot oil. Fry until golden brown and crispy, 10-15 minutes.
Remove bananas from oil, and drain on paper towels. Serve hot.

Moroccan Roast Vegetables

Moroccan Roast Vegetables with Lemon Pepper and Mint Dressing

Ingredients:

1 tsp Select Seasoning lemon and pepper, 60g
2 red capsicums, desseded and ccut into wedges
500g pumpkin, peeled and cut into chunks
1 red onion, cut into wedges
1 Eggplant, cut into chunks
3 TBSP olive oil
2 TBSP Select Moroccan Seasoning
2 Courgettes, thinly sliced lengthwise
1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed

Lemon Pepper and Mint Dressing

1 cup Greek yoghurt
1 tsp Select Mint Flakes
1 tsp honey

Preheat the oven to 200degC.
To prepare the dressing, combine all the ingredients and set aside.
Place the capsicums, pumpkin, onion and eggplant in a roasting dish. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with the Select Moroccan seasoning. Roast in the oven for 15 minutes.

Add the courgett slices and asparagus and cook for a further 15 minutes, or until the vegtables are tender and golden brown.

Drizzle over the Lemon Pepper and Mint Dressing and serve warm or as a salad.

Raspberry and Greek Yoghurt Smoothie

For lunch today we were cooking up pies. It was the last thing I felt like. Then I remembered that a couple of weeks ago I had bought a bag of frozen raspberries with the intention of making smoothies sometime when I felt like it.

This recipe is kind of thrown together, but my first mouthful had me swooning. It's delicious. Perfection.

Raspberry and Greek Yoghurt Smoothie

About 1 cupful of frozen raspberries or more if you like it like that.
2 heaped tablespoons of Greek Yoghurt (I used lite)
2 tablespoons of Mossop's Pohutukawa Honey
Milk

Blend it all together. I think the pohutukawa honey contributed to the flavour considerably. Mossop's honey is a local honey here in the Bay of Plenty, but I think it's available nationwide.

Warm Lemon Sauce

This is a really quick and easy lemon sauce which is perfect for desert. I needed this one night when I had some old fruit cake that needed using up, but I hated to throw out. And we only had 1/2 bottle of milk in the fridge - truly and honestly we need to invest in a cow, the way my children guzzle down the milk! So custard was out of the question - and a lovely warm lemon sauce was the next best option, and this is perfectly delicious.

Ingredients:

 1/2 cup sugar
1 TBSP cornflour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup boiling water
1 TBSP grated lemon peel
2 TBSP Lemon juice
1 Tablespoon butter

Method:

In a pot, combine sugar, cornflour and salt. Add boiling water. Cook until mixture is thick and clear. Add in lemon peel, lemon juice and finally butter.

Serve over steamed pudding or icecream.

Mushroom and Bacon Spaghetti

I got this recipe off pinterest.com. Here is the original.

And I've already made it 2 or 3 times. The sauce in this is scrumptious and I think it is my husband's current favourite. Sorry for the horrible photo - it's always nighttime when I want to take a picture of the food, and my camera is not so good on night-light.

Mushroom and Bacon Spaghetti

6-8 rashers of bacon, cut into pieces
3 spring onions, sliced and diced
250grams of your favourite mushrooms
1/4 tsp lemon zest
Large handful of basil leaves, roughly chopped
300-500ml of cream
1/2 cup white wine (less if you don't like it swimming)
Spaghetti
Grated parmesan

Fry the bacon in a little oil and cook until crispy. Add spring onions and cook for a couple of minutes, then add the mushrooms with a knob of butter.

Cook the spaghetti with a pinch of salt and a dash of oil.

Into the bacon mix grate in the lemon zest and add the basil. Stir to combine then pour iin the cream and wine and simmer until ready to eat. I let it reduce for 5 minutes or so. Remove rom the heat and add the parmesan and basil garnish.

Quick Weekend Pizza Base

This is a recipe I use a lot! Ok - it's not the most perfect, fluffy and light pizza base, but if you're in a hurry and you don't know what else to have for Sunday night dinner, this is the one I go to.

The recipe comes from a very old book given to me by my Nana when I was 12 years old.
Probably one of the original kids cook books from Alison Holst. Judging by the cover it looks like it was in conjunction with the tv programme, What Now - which is still running. And I had a friend who had that exat same sweatshirt that the girl on the cover is wearing.

Here's the recipe:

Quick Weekend Pizza Base

(I always double the original to make one base, so here is my version).

2 cups self-raising flour
4 TBSP oil
1/2 cup milk
Pinch of mixed herbs

Add the oil and milk to the self-raising flour. Mix to a dough and roll our into a circle or onto a pizza tray. Add toppings and back at 200degC for about 10 minutes.
What could be more simple than that!

Homemade Semifreddo

Semifreddo means half-frozen in Italian. Even though it is frozen, it doesn't freeze as hard as regular icecream because it has eggwhites and cream in the ingredients.

We have been enjoying this, even though it does take a lot of bowls to make, it's pretty easy, and  very creamy! You have to make it a day ahead of when you want it, although my husband argued that and dug in on the night I made it - actually it was pretty frozen already. I don't have a very pretty photo of mine, but this one will suffice in the meantime.

Semifreddo

300ml cream
1 TBSP icing sugar
3 eggs, seaparated
3 TBSP caster sugar (for yolks)
1/4 cup caster sugar (for whites)
Flavouring of choice

Line a 1.5 litre mould with plastic wrap, or use a container with a lid.
Lightly whip cream with icing sugar
Using an electric mixer, beat egg yolks with the first measure of caster sugar unti lthick and pale.
Using a clean bowl and cleaned and dried beaters, beat egg whites to soft peaks. Add second measure of caster sugar and beat until thickened.

Gently fold together egg whites, cream and yolks. Start by folding a little cream into the egg whtie to lighten it and make mixing easier.

Add flavouring of choice then spoon mixtur in container, cover and freeze for at least 8 hours - overnight if possible. Makes about 1.5 litres.