Oh how I love the food and flavours of the Middle East

July 15, 2022July 16, 2022 / sbaskitchen / 2 Comments

While the countries that are encompassed in the region, or if you prefer, term “The Middle East” can lead to many arguments, I prefer to use them to bring about discussions of recipes and delicious food that can be shared by all. With food that is vibrant, colourful and aromatic, many Middle Eastern countries share recipes that are very similar, in fact the same dish in the same country can have many nuances, depending on who is cooking it, and what is available at the time.

Glorious Pomegranates

Harissa Spice Blend

Exploring the Flavours of the Middle East-r

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Sweet Chilli Sauce – A little fire from the garden

June 9, 2022June 9, 2022 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

When the garden gives you chillies…

Cayenne Chillies finally ripening

Long Red Chillies grown from saved seed.

This year I planted out five chilli plants that I’d grown indoors over winter, doing this, gave them a huge head start when planted out. For those who are chilli aficionados, they weren’t anything exciting, but the cayennes were self sown, dug up and brought indoors for the winter, while the Long Reds were grown from saved seed, which kind of makes it all the more special! The result… A wonderful chilli harvest – the best ever! So there was only one thing to do…

Make sweet chilli sauce, of course!

A little bowl of sweet fire

In a dish and ready to test. (Gary says it should come with a warning!)

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A little knowledge sharing…

June 5, 2022June 5, 2022 / sbaskitchen / 9 Comments

After years of wanting to do this, but not having the confidence to venture forward with the idea, now, after receiving much encouragement from those around me, in less than two weeks time I will be running my first Knowledge Sharing Session at a local Neighbourhood House. Yes, I am a little nervous, but I am also a little excited! So I thought I would share what we will be doing in the first session. It will be all about sauerkraut, or as they call it in France, choucroute, and we may even touch on growing your own cabbages at home.

Sauerkraut or choucroute, has become increasingly popular in recent times. It’s seen as a way to improve gut health, easing digestive symptoms and supporting your immune system by adding probiotics and enzymes to your diet.

I just love toasted sourdough with a little Dijon mustard and melted cheese, topped with sauerkraut for breakfast each day.

Toast with Dijon mustard, melted, cheese and sauerkraut.

The other great benefit of making sauerkraut, and one that I think sometimes gets ignored in these times, is that it is a fabulous way of preserving cabbage when it’s in season. I love to use this sauerkraut to make delicious, warming, comfort food during the colder months of the year Continue reading →

Shipwrecks of a Bygone Era

May 26, 2022 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

The stunning shoreline of the Ninety Mile Beach in Gippsland, Australia separates Bass Strait from the Gippsland Lakes, with the sandy beaches, edged by sand dunes, stretching for approximately 94 miles or 151 kilometers. In years long past, this pristine stretch of beach, uninterrupted by rocky headlands, provided no safe harbour for sail and steam vessels when storms and gale force winds hit, leaving the coastline scattered with many offshore wrecks and the occasional onshore wreck.

On a recent trip to the area we chose to head to one such onshore wreck, that of the barque ‘Trinculo’, where the skeleton of the wreck is still visible on the beach near the small coastal village of Golden Beach.

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Baked Duck Fish with Pumpkin, Brussel Sprouts, Fennel and Orange

May 23, 2022 / sbaskitchen / Leave a comment

This dish was created while we were taking a little break at nearby Loch Sport. The colours on the plate remind me of this stunningl sunset, captured beautifully on camera by Gary, on the evening that the recipe came to be.

Sunset over Lake Wellington (Photo taken by Gary Malyon)

With our favourite fish and what veg I had at hand, the recipe just evolved and was delicious! The chilli sauce used, was my own homemade version, one that my Gary says needs to come with a warning!

Baked Duck Fish with Pumpkin, Brussel Sprouts, Fennel and Orange

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

A recipe created using one of our favourite fish and what was to hand...

Category: Fish, Main

Style: Australian

Keyword: Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Pumpkin, Fennel, Fish, Gluten Free, One Pan, Orange, Pumpkin, Tray Bake

Quantity: 4 serves

Author: sbaskitchen

Ingredients

FOR THE VEGETABLES

1/2 butternut pumpkin
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 sprigs of thyme leaves removed
1/4 tsp salt flakes
freshly ground black pepper
1 medium fennel bulb very thinly sliced
12 Brussels sprouts trimmed and quartered
1 small orange sliced into 1/4 cm thick rounds

FOR THE FISH

2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
4 (175g) Duck Fish fillets or other firm firm fish such as Snapper or Blue Eye Cod
4 sprigs thyme
Salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper to season

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200˚C
Cut the solid end of the pumpkin into 1.2cm thick slices and peel. Retain the remaining pumpkin
Place the pumpkin into a shallow baking dish, drizzle with 1 tbsp of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes
Meanwhile peel the remaining pumpkin and cut into 2 cm pieces.
Select a basin large enough to hold the vegetables and then add the garlic, orange zest, olive oil, thyme leaves, 1/2 tsp salt and a good grinding of black pepper, stirring well to combine. Add the pumpkin pieces, fennel and Brussel sprouts and toss well to coat.
Scatter the coated vegetables and the orange slices onto the baking tray with the partially cooked pumpkin, and return to the oven for a further 10-15 minutes, until the pumpkin is just cooked and the Brussels sprouts are beginning to char.
Place the fish fillets into the bowl that the vegetables had been in and toss to coat with the residual oil and seasonings.
Combine the sweet chilli sauce, garlic and orange zest together in a small dish.
Once the pumpkin is just cooked through, remove the baking dish from the oven and arrange the fish in amongst the vegetables. Top each fillet of fish with some of the chilli sauce mixture and a sprig of thyme.
Return the baking tray to the oven and continue to cook until the fish is just cooked through, approximately 10 minutes.
To serve, arrange the pumpkin slices on individual serving plates and top with a fillet of the fish, a slice of orange and a sprig of thyme. Finally scatter around the pumpkin pieces, Brussels sprouts and fennel.