♥ City Night Loving ♥

Guess who went marketing on main last night – me me me me...I arrived at about 8 because traffic on the highway was such a biatch but it was SO worth the journey! I opted to get off the highway after driving at 10kms per hour and zig zagged through town. Was I nervous driving in town at night – hell yes I was but I drove like a beast and got there safely. 

The food and the lovely people. I ate this jaffle (I think that's what its called). Had mince in the center and was cooked in these old looking clamps on a fire...was really good. Those are nuts are UBER amazing

Down below

What.A.Night! I ate so much good food and bought such great stuff (read bags, marmalades, chillie relish, nuts coated in honey and some other sugary goodness)  = HEAVEN! 

Perfect plan for a Spring evening

 

It was great seeing so many people out and about in the JHB CBD. Nights out like last night remind me that there is more to life than my 9-5 and living in the perfect triangle. 

This is my lovely sister! :)

 

My lovely cousin ;)

 

Food food glorious food

So do yourself a favour and head on to the market this Sunday or the first Thursday evening of every month for the night market experience.

BEST selection of balsamic vinegars and infused olive oils..think pomegranate infused olive oil. That's what I call winning!

Hansel and Gretel path

Sweet for my sweet, sugar for my honey

 

It's been so cold lately, as is expected with winter ;)) and anything that's cakey or sweet seems to just hit the spot and make you warm and tingly inside. I got tired of the standard chocolate cake or vanilla sponge and decided to try out Zabwans recipe for Honey Cake.

This cake is quick and easy to make (really easy) and so tasty. 

T and I enjoy a few slices (read the entire cake) with some warm homemade custard.

DEE-VINE!!

Click on the image or here for the recipe.

Thanks Zabwan for the recipe :) 

A "some-more" snack...without the calories

When winter starts, the number of clothes you pile on increases ..and so does the amount of food that you put in your mouth. The need to always be warm is met with the need to well..always be eating. This of course is a generalisation as I have a few friends who do not eat like bears who are about to hibernate for the winter season haha but in my case, I always have the need to want to snack on something.

I found a healthy snack option which is too good to not share with you. 

Ingredients

1 can chickpeas

Extra virgin olive oil

Mixed Herbs

Cayenne Pepper (optional)

Salt (optional)

Method

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius.

Drain a can of chickpeas and throw into an oven proof dish.

Sprinkle some EVOO on it - enough to get some of the peas covered in it.

Add your spices and shake the bowl around so that this mix lathers as many chickpeas as possible.

Put in the oven and bake for 40minutes or until it reaches the desired crispy, crunchy texture.

Throw in a bowl and enjoy in front of the tv :) The great thing about this snack is that it in fact low in calories (if you watch the amount of EVOO and salt you use).

You can add other spices as an alternative to the ones I mentioned above. The amount of spices also depends on your own personal taste buds. On this particular occasion I was looking for a mexican chilli-ish kinda of taste hence the cayenne pepper. On another occasion, I used just salt and vinegar (sprinkle of vinegar added after the chickpeas were done) – smelled just as good as sloppy slap chips :).

Mix it up any-which-way you like. It is after all going into YOUR belly :)

"Budget Beater Bourgeois Tart" or just Caramelised Onion & Courgette Tart

If you live in JHB, you had to have experienced the torrential rains this past weekend which probably also means that you were also stuck in doors.  I for one LOVE the rain. I love its cleansing nature and the fresh sandy smell that follows the downpour! The only time I will ever sing 'rain, rain, go away come again another day' is when I plan on being out 'on the streets (cue RJ Benjamin :)) Okay corny I know I know  :)

Because T and I opted to stay indoors, I chose to make a tart that I've been meaning to make for sometime now but the idea of rolling out pastry just seemed so damn daunting. Fear not: that is not the case with this recipe. Store bought pastry that need not be rolled out (WHOO HOO) and is done in about couple of minutes (enough for you to cuddle while it rains outside :))

Ingredients

1 Roll Puff Pastry (left out to defrost naturally and cut into 4 squares)

2 tablespoons butter (salted or unsalted doesn't matter really)

5/6 courgettes thinly sliced

2 large (or 4 small) brown onions

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Salt and Pepper

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

½  cup grated mozzarella

fresh Thyme

¼ cup of milk

Rocket for serving

Ingredients

1 Roll Puff Pastry (left out to defrost naturally and cut into 4 squares)

2 tablespoons butter (salted or unsalted doesn't matter really)

5/6 courgettes thinly sliced

2 large (or 4 small) brown onions

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Salt and Pepper

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

½  cup grated mozzarella

fresh Thyme

¼ cup of milk

Rocket for serving

Method

Melt butter in a pan

Add sliced onions and cook for 20 mins or until caramelised (cook on a low setting to avoid them burning)

Add sugar and balsamic vinegar. Cook for 3 mins

Season (with salt and pepper) and set aside

Toss baby marrows in olive oil

Roll out (not using a rolling pin just unroll it) pastry and score a 2cm border around each pastry square. Place pastry squares on greased baking tray (I lined mine with tin foil and sprayed it with spray and cook)

Top with cheese, onions and courgette

Brush pastry edges with milk

Bake for 15-20 minsor until cooked through.

Top with rocket. Or alternatively serve with pesto and a side salad.

This meal is enough to feed four people or 8 people who choose to eat more salad than pastry :)

Expensive – not at all!!

Time to make – not long :)

I'll definitely serve this tart again...and with all this rainy weather that's predicted for JHB, it's a good enough reason to get all TARTY! :)

My weekend - like a picture book ;)

Mixture for shortbread..rubbing my hand through this mixture was so much fun! It took me back to my days in Swaziland, in my grannys kitchen when I used to stand on her kitchen chair to reach the table..would help her mix everything together and wait eagerly for the freshly baked goods...GOOD MEMORIES!!

Close up of the buttery goodness

End product

My lovely sister playing with the decor for my cupcakes..

Last Saturday we went for drinks @ the office in Greenside..will do another post on the venue..but this was a gingerbread mule followed by a Jagerbomb! hmmm goodie!

I met mom, Jand L (my younger sister - one is 17 and the other is 25) for breakfast at Blubird Shopping center..there is this really great old school family-togetherness- feeling restaurant there called Bay Leaf and Sage..awesome service and awesome food in an awesome setting (too many awesomes?? haha)  Do yourself a favour and wake up early one saturday or sunday am - have breakfast there! Your body will thank you.

J had this for lunch...a creamy pesto pasta with chicken and mushrooms...really good

J's favourite - Cappuccino with LOTSSSS of cream! And she has this allll the time but doesn't put on any wright! ARGH hate it!! Wish I was that lucky,,I just look at it and I gain 1kg ;)

This was Sunday Lunch..well Monday lunch with the family...was my grannys birthday (she turned 68 this year but doesn't look a day over 50!!) and we decided to invite the family over for lunch! I LOVE family time!! With all my heart and soul! In this mix is Roasted Potatoes, Lamb Stew, Mutton Curry, Savoury Rice, Chicken Breyani, Creamed Spinach, Butternut, J's special Pasta Thermador, Baked Bean salad and potatoe salad - with wine on the side of course :)

Part 2 of family get together....We had pancakes with strawberrys and cream and/or ice cream - whatever you wished for :) These strawberrys make me happy cos they're soooo fresh and bright and earthy! Summer is DEFINITELY on its way! Cannot wait to experiment with strawberry desserts! nyom nyom!

A chocolate cake that I made at 0830 in the am! I don't lik waking up early but it was a special day for granny so I was up with the birds busy "bee-ing" it up in the kitchen...

YUMMYY

I tried to be different with my dessert...as always...and decided to tear my pancake into long strips and then layer it with cream AND ice cream with strawberrys thrown in the mix...needless to say it was way too much for my to finish ...but it was soooo pretty!! just look at it! :)

And that my dear friends is what I got up to sometime ago :)

Oh my heaven!!!

I have this unbelievable love and "lust" for potatoes! I could eat potatoes all day everyday..any which way - boiled, baked, fried, steamed, mashed, curried and a whole host of other ways!! I came across the following recipe a few weeks ago and decided to give it a try, the same night I got the recipe.

Now, I'm not a fan of camembert cheese, but I love cheese! And I figured that Cheese, all stringy and tasty, would go so well with my 1st love - POTATOES!!!! It took me more than an hour to make this dish (prep time and cooking time) but it was OH SO worth the wait!!! I had this dish for 2 consecutive days and my heart broke when I had to throw out the last little bit of pie! Anyway I hope u enjoy this pie as much as I enjoyed making it and eating it!!! :)


6 large potatoes, peeled and cooked (I used 10 potatoes cos mine were kinda small and I LOVE potatoes ;))
2 large onions, finely sliced
1 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 rolls puff pastry
1 1/2 cup grated mature cheddar
2 rounds camembert, sliced
Salt, pepper & paprika to taste
125ml cream
2 Tbs onion soup powder
1 egg, beaten

In a pan, fry the onions in some oil until soft and golden.

Add the garlic and fry for another 2 minutes.

Remove and set aside.

Thinly slice the potatoes, and set aside.

Roll the pastry out to about 2-3mm thick.

Place on a suitable baking tray.

Spread the onions over the pastry leaving a 2-3cm border free.

Scatter the Cheddar cheese over the onions followed by a layer of sliced potatoes.

Season each layer of potato well with salt, pepper and paprika.

Layer the camembert over the potatoes, followed by another layer of potatoes.

Season well.

Mix the soup powder with the cream and beat until smooth.

Slowly pour over the potatoes and bring the edges of the pastry up.

Roll out the remaining roll of pastry and lay over the pie.

Crimp the edges and brush with the beaten egg.

Bake in the oven (180°c) for 15-20 minutes until the pastry is golden and crisp.

Some notes:
- I don't think two rolls of puff pastry are necessary! Yes having pastry at the bottom of the pie is great but you don't have to use it.
- Make sure that your potatoes are cooked thoroughly cooked through. I made the mistake of parboiling them thinking that they would cook faster in the oven (mistake!! so I had to bake my pie longer than the prescribed time shown above)
- I tried to be smart and used a whole carton of cream (it was really creamy and great but while it was baking in the oven, some of the cream 'escaped' from the dish :)
- Don't be shy with ur cheese!! Or the paprika! :)

Enjoy with a green salad if u're feeling guilty about this indulgent dish! I never had that feeling *cough cough* hahaha

Hope you enjoy this dish as much as I did! I will most def b making it again!