Beetroots are a delicious and versatile vegetable, especially when roasted. Serve them with roast beef, steak or on a burger, use them later in sandwiches or make a moreish dip. Preheat the oven to 200C (400F) then wash and trim the fresh beetroots (without peeling) and pat them dry. Combine 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar with the…… Continue reading beetroot + dip
gado gado
My version of this Indonesian salad is a satisfying and delicious meal, although not a traditional one. The various components can be prepared ahead of time and the salad assembled before serving either warm or at room temperature. First hard-boil a few eggs. Now for the saté sauce. Mince (very finely or in a food processor) an onion, 2…… Continue reading gado gado
chocolate cake with chilli jam
Chocolate and chilli go so well together. I decided to make a flourless chocolate cake to go with chilli jam. This cake is deliciously light and moist. You will need: 6 tablespoons cocoa powder, 1/3 cup boiling water, 100g butter, 1 cup caster sugar, 400g almond meal, 4 large eggs, 1 cup of milk soured…… Continue reading chocolate cake with chilli jam
bread
I read somewhere that you can use whey (left over from cheese making) in bread, so I tried it in these loaves. The dark ones are made with 4 cups each or dark rye mix and organic white flour, 6 teaspoons of dry yeast, 3 teaspoons of bread improver, 6 teaspoons of sugar, a tablespoon…… Continue reading bread
grilled salmon
This is such a simple and delicious way to cook fresh salmon fillets. The flavouring is Korean in style. Make a marinade of 2 tablespoons each of soy sauce, malt vinegar (red wine vinegar would work too) and brown sugar, 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and 2 cloves of crushed garlic. Pour this over the…… Continue reading grilled salmon
goat cheese
Yesterday I made goat cheese. I’ve been experimenting a little, although I’m a beginner as far as cheese-making goes. So far I’ve tried various forms of full-milk ricotta, ricotta made from whey as well as a cream cheese. This time I decided to make cream cheese from goat’s milk, using buttermilk as a starter. This…… Continue reading goat cheese
hot-pot
I love Vietnamese and Thai flavours so I decided to use these in a pork hot-pot. All the ingredients went straight into the pot: pork ribs, sliced eggplant, diced shallots and garlic, finely sliced chilli, lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, stock, fish sauce and a little sugar. I put the lid on and baked it…… Continue reading hot-pot
green olives
We’ve just marinated this year’s olives. It’s taken a lot of experimenting to decide on the final method. The first thing was trying them green (unripe) or black (ripe). My preference is for green as the olives are still firm and have a nice nutty flavour. This means, because they’re unripe, that they need to…… Continue reading green olives
tortilla soup
Today I’m making tortilla soup. Usually our left-over tortillas are transformed into quesadillas but this time I’ve made sure to keep a few. First there’s the chicken. This is optional, but I’m making this as a substantial main meal so I’m poaching some chicken in cold water. I find that bringing the heat up slowly…… Continue reading tortilla soup
chilli pepper, chilli, chillie, chili, and chile
I’m an addict. Let me count the many forms I use regularly: FRESH (bird’s-eye, jalapeños, cayenne, scotch bonnet – all kinds), DRY (whole, crushed and even in a grinder Italian style), MEXICAN PRESERVED AND DRIED (habanero, pequin, pasilla, ancho, chipotle, guajillo, and de arbol), GROUND (this includes standard as well as ground chipotle, ground Korean chilli and…… Continue reading chilli pepper, chilli, chillie, chili, and chile
michelle picker cooks 