Green Goddess Salad

July 25, 2017July 20, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

We have recently discovered the green goddess dressing and fallen in love! This is our very own THUD version dolloped over lentils and yummy veg.

Serves 2

Ingredients: 1 tbsp chopped parsley, 1-2 tbsp chopped tarragon, 1tbsp chopped chives, 50g rocket, 1 baby cucumber, 1 beetroot, 1 carrot.

Larder: ½ C mayonnaise, ½ C plain yoghurt, 1 tsp mustard, 150g puy lentils or a tin/pouch of cooked puy/green lentils, 2 eggs, salt and pepper (optional: 3 anchovies or 1 tsp miso paste).

Instructions:

If using uncooked lentils, place them in a saucepan and with 3/4. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20-30 mintues until tender.
Make the green goddess dressing: Finely chop all the herbs and if using, the anchovies. Combine herbs and anchovies/miso paste in a bowl with the mayonnaise and mustard and then whisk in the yoghurt. Season and adjust according to taste.
In a salad bowl, grate the beetroot and carrot, slice the cucumber, add the rocket and toss to combine.
Poach two eggs and when lentils are soft but still with a little bite, drain any remaining water.
While eggs are poaching, pile up your green goddess salad starting with lentils, followed by the veggies and large dollops of green goddess dressing. Finally, when the eggs are ready, pop them on top and enjoy.
Note: the dressing is quite thick so stir in as you eat.

Asian Noodle Salad

June 8, 2017June 21, 2017 / thuddirect / 1 Comment

A scrumptious Asian noodle salad packed full of beetroot, mouli, carrots and more. All combined with a gorgeous chilli dressing, it makes for an interesting and tasty summer salad.

Serves 2

Ingredients: 1 romero pepper, 1 carrot, 1/2 a beetroot, 150g mouli/daikon radish, 1 spring onion, 1 garlic clove, 1 red chilli, small bunch of coriander.

Larder: 175g rice or vermicelli noodles, 60ml vegetable oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, juice of ½ a lime, 2 tsp honey (optional extra: cooked prawns and sesame seeds).

Instructions:

Deseed the chilli and then finely slice the chilli, garlic clove and spring onion. Cook in a small saucepan on med to high heat with the vegetable oil for about 3 minutes. Don’t allow to burn.
Cook the egg noodles for 4 minutes, drain and return to the pan. Pour over the chilli oil mix, toss and let stand.
Julienne the pepper, mouli, beetroot and carrot. To julienne your veggies, peel them if needed, and then cut into very thin planks, place the planks on top of each other and then slice them to create batons as close to matchstick size as possible.
Chop the coriander, including stems.
In a small bowl or glass whisk together lime, soy sauce and honey.
Mix sauce through the noodles and then add the veg and coriander.
Serve in bowls and garnish with optional sesame seeds and cooked prawns.

Asparagus Tart with Beet Slaw

May 24, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

A pretty asparagus tart that’s super simple to make, but looks fancy and fun and is accompanied by a beaut beet salad. This meal is one of our favourites.

Ingredients: 4-5 asparagus spears, 1 beetroot, 1 stick of celery(allergen), 50g bunch of rocket and 2 stems of dill.

From the larder: 1 roll of puff pastry, 100g goats cheese or feta, 1 egg, 4tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (optional: 1 tsp mayonnaise).

Instructions:

Gather all your ingredients.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Beat the feta or goats cheese with the egg. It should be thick but easily spreadable.
Unroll the pastry onto a small baking tray approximately 20 x 30cm. Fold over or trim off any extra pastry and score a line around the edge of the tart creating a 1-inch border.
Cut the asparagus spears in half lengthways. Spread the egg and cheese mixture onto the pastry, lay all of the asparagus on top cut side down, season with salt and pepper and a light drizzle of oil. Bake for 15-20 mins until pastry is puffed and golden and asparagus tender.
While the tart is baking, make the slaw: grate the beetroot and finely chop the celery. Combine in a bowl with rocket and dill leaves.
Crumble in any remaining goat’s cheese.
Whisk together the oil, vinegar and optional mayonnaise. Adjust proportions according to taste. Mix into the salad.
When the tart is golden, serve slices with the beet slaw.

Beetroot and Cauli Curry

April 11, 2017April 6, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Pretty in pink, this curry becomes an extraordinary colour as the beetroot and coconut milk meld together with fresh spices, curry leaves and cauliflower in this delicious and beautiful curry.

Ingredients: Beetroot, cauliflower, shallots, garlic clove, turmeric, ginger, curry leaves, spinach, chilli (use according to taste), coriander.

From the larder: 175g rice, 1 tin coconut milk, oil (vegetable, rapeseed or coconut oil is best).

Instructions:

Start cooking the rice according to the packet instructions.
Mince garlic, chop shallots, and sauté in a glug of oil. Chop the chilli, mince or grate the turmeric and ginger and add to the pan. Fry for a minute or so.
Peel and dice beetroot into small chunks. Slice the cauliflower in small florets. Add to the pan and then add the tin of coconut milk and curry leaves. Simmer on a low heat for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
When curry is nearly ready to serve and beetroot is soft to poke with a knife, add spinach and stir in to wilt.

Serve curry with rice and torn coriander.

Beetroot Burgers With Rosemary Roasties and Padron Peppers

March 8, 2017March 7, 2017 / thuddirect / 1 Comment

Try a meat free day with these delicious beetroot burger served up with rosemary root fries and padron peppers. It’s healthy, beautiful not to mention full of flavour and spice.

Ingredients: 1/2 a sweet potato, 1 parsley root, sprig of rosemary, 1 beetroot, 1 shallot, small bunch of coriander, 4-5 padrón peppers.

From the larder: 1 tin of black beans, 1 egg, oil, 2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp cinnamon (optional: 3 tbsp flour, 75-100g feta, sourdough buns or lettuce leaf, sour cream).

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
Slice all the root veg, apart from the beetroot, into thin baton shapes, place in a roasting tin with rosemary leaves. Drizzle with oil, season and place in the oven to roast.
In a bowl: mash black beans, grate beetroot and grate or slice the shallot. Mix in the egg, cumin, cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Allow to stand for 5-10 minutes if you have time, and then add chopped coriander and crumble in the feta. If it feels very sloppy and wet, add 3-5tbsp flour.
Gather into patty shapes about 1cm thick and 5-6 cm in diameter. Add more flour if it is too wet when pulling together into patties.
Fry for about 4 minutes on each side or grill for 5 minutes on both sides – they will still be soft, but should crisp slightly on the outside.
While cooking the burgers, add padrón peppers whole to a frying pan on high heat with a little oil, sprinkle with salt & cook until skin blisters & starts to blacken. They take about 2 mins so add when you’re close to serving up.
Serve root fries, padrón peppers and burgers with optional sourdough bread, and any other fixin’s you fancy.

Beetroot Rosti

January 25, 2017January 23, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Full of colourful goodness, this beetroot rosti is scrumptious with a little chilli kick and spring onion zing. Served with tenderstem broccoli, feta and seeds, this is a lovely healthy mid week meal.

Ingredients: 1 large, 2 small beetroot, 4-5 new potatoes, 100g tenderstem broccoli, 1 spring onions, 1 green chilli, 2tbsp chopped chives.

Larder: 50g feta cheese, 4 eggs, oil, salt and pepper (optional extra: 2tbsp pumpkin or sesame seeds).

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
In a bowl, grate the potatoes and the beetroot. Finely chop the chives, spring onion and deseed and finely slice half the green chilli and add to the bowl. Add 2 eggs and mix well to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat a glug of oil in an ovenproof frying pan or casserole dish. Pour the rösti mixture into the pan; spread out and push down gently so that it fills the pan. Cook for approximately 5 minutes, check the underside and when starting to brown, place frying pan in the oven to roast the rösti for 15 minutes.
When the rösti is almost ready, roughly chop and blanche the broccoli for 5 minutes by placing in a saucepan of boiling water.
While the broccoli is blanching, poach 2 eggs. To save on washing up, you can poach the eggs in the broccoli water after it’s blanched!
When the rösti is browning and crispy, remove from the oven. Serve half the rösti per person with a poached egg and broccoli with crumbled feta and mixed seeds sprinkled on top along with a squeeze of lemon if you have it.

Roasted Veg with Quinoa and Sprouting Flowers

November 23, 2016 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Born from a cross between kale and brussel sprouts around 15 years ago, they have a lovely sweet nutty flavour and have been classed as a ‘superfood’ for being vitamin rich and packed full of dietary fiber. Developed through traditional breeding techniques, we enjoyed finding out that the breed was named by a reader of Good House Keeping in a competition run on the magazine’s website!

Ingredients: 150g new potatoes, 1-2 small beetroot, 100g chantenay carrots, 1 grelot onion, a small bunch of basil, 80g sprouting flowers.

From the larder: 100g quinoa or couscous, 1 tin black beans or kidney beans, 1-2 tbsp honey, juice of ½ a lime, 3 tbsp olive oil (optional extra: ½ tsp cumin powder, grilled salmon or poached eggs).

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
Chop the potatoes, beetroot and the bulb of the onion into 1-2 cm chunks. Chop any larger carrots in half.
Place in a roasting tin with a drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle with cumin powder, salt and pepper. Roast for 25-30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the dressing; finely chop the basil and combine with 2 tbsp olive oil, lime juice, honey and a pinch of salt. Taste and add more salt, lime, honey or oil according to taste.
Cook the quinoa or couscous as per packet instructions. Trim the ends of the sprouting flowers. Add them whole to the quinoa during the last 3 minutes of cooking and then drain. If using couscous, steam the flowers separately in a small saucepan of water for 3 minutes.
Drain and rinse the beans and mix in to the quinoa.
To serve, place roasted veggies on top of the quinoa, beans and sprouting flowers and drizzle with the basil dressing.

Red Rice Salad

September 20, 2016September 14, 2017 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Red rice has a lovely wholesome and nutty flavour, not to mention and fabulous colour. It’s combined with beetroot, rocket and delicious dressing in this tasty salad.

Serves 2

Ingredients: 1 and a half beetroot, 1-2 carrots, 2 runner beans, 1 spring onion, handful of rocket, small bunch of curly parsley and flat parsley and 1-2 shallots depending on size.

Larder: 200g red rice or mixture of puy lentils and red rice, 1 tsp honey, 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp red wine vinegar, juice of ½ a lemon,

(optional extras: 50g feta, grilled fish or chicken, stock cube).

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C.
Cook the rice with 600ml of water or stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for approx 30 mins.
Make the dressing. Combine oil, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, a pinch of salt and finely minced shallots in the salad bowl, whisk to combine, adjust proportions to taste.
Finely slice the spring onion and chop both kinds of parsley. Add to salad bowl and mix.
Peel and grate the beetroot and carrot. Add to the salad bowl.
Slice runner beans on the diagonal into 2cm pieces and when rice nearly ready, add them to the rice for the last 3 or so minutes of cooking. When rice cooked, drain any remaining water.
Add to the salad bowl. Mix in the rocket and if using, crumble in the feta.
Serve with optional grilled chicken or fish.

Beetroot and Sorrel Risotto with Fennel and Celery Salad

August 2, 2016August 8, 2016 / thuddirect / Leave a comment

Ingredients: 1 clove of garlic, 3 shallots, 150g beetroot(1 small), 1 small bunch of sorrel, half a bulb of fennel and 1 stick of celery(allergen).

Larder: 175g Arborio (risotto) rice, 600ml stock, 2 knobs of butter, salt and pepper, 50g Parmesan, juice of half a lemon.

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Peel and chop the beetroot into 1cm chunks, drizzle with oil and roast for 20-25 minutes.
Mince a clove of garlic and finely chop the shallots. Sauté on a low heat in a knob of butter until soft.
Add the Arborio rice and fry for 3-4 minutes, until slightly translucent. Prepare the stock. Add a ladle at a time to the rice, stirring regularly. Allow the stock to absorb before adding the next ladle of stock. Keep adding until you have used all the stock and the risotto is al denté. This should take about 20 minutes.
While the risotto is cooking, make a fennel and celery salad. Remove any woody stalk and the fronds from the fennel, chop the fronds and thinly slice or shave the fennel, using a knife, or mandolin if you have one. Slice the celery into matchstick thin batons and place with fennel on a small plate. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon over, drizzle with olive oil, add salt and pepper and toss well.
When risotto is ready, chop the sorrel and stir in along with the roasted beetroot. Add a pinch of pepper, a knob of butter and 50g grated Parmesan. Place a lid on the pan, remove from the heat and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
Serve the risotto with the fennel and celery salad and enjoy the colours!

Asian Noodle Salad

July 19, 2016May 4, 2017 / thuddirect / 1 Comment

Get chopping with this delicious, fresh Asian inspired noodle salad.

Ingredients: 1 romero pepper, 2 carrots, 1/2 a beetroot, 200g mouli/daikon, 1 spring onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2-1 chilli, small bunch of coriander.

Larder: 175g egg noodles, ¼ C vegetable oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, Juice of ½ a lime, 2 tsp honey (optional extra: prawns and sesame seeds).

Instructions:

Deseed the chilli and then finely slice the chilli, garlic clove and spring onion. Cook in a small saucepan on med to high hear with the vegetable oil for about 3 minutes. Don’t allow to burn.
Cook the egg noodles for 4 minutes, drain and return to the pan. Pour over the chilli oil, toss and let stand.
Julienne the pepper, mouli, beetroot and carrot. To julienne your veggies, peel them if needed, and then cut into very thin planks, place the planks on top of each other and then slice the planks to create batons as close to matchstick size as possible.
Chop the coriander.
In a small bowl or glass whisk together lime, soy sauce and honey.
Mix sauce through the noodles and then add the veg and coriander.
Serve in bowls and garnish with sesame seeds.