STEAM BUNS
We first met these fat little puffs of deliciousness in Bali in May and knew we wanted to make them at home. One cold Sunday recently, my son began the process of making them for our dinner. We were very glad he did as they were wonderful, filled with spicy meat and vegetables.
Cut little squares of parchment paper to slip in the fold of the buns so they don’t stick while they steam. Meanwhile, bring the water to boiling point in the steamer.
Insert paper and fold in half over a chopstick, put in steamer insert.
Steam the buns for eight minutes or until they become light and fluffy. Carefully remove and add fillings, serve.
Steamed Bao Buns recipe from Jeremy Pang www.bbcgoodfood.com
Delicious!
APPLE CRUMBLE
Apples are in season so I made apple crumble. Stewed the apples in water with a little sugar and cinnamon, plus some sultanas. Made the crumble from oatmeal, flour, sugar and butter. Serve with cream or icecream. Good winter food, good any other time, too.
ROASTING VEGETABLES
The Australian Women’s Weekly VEGETARIAN BASICS cookbook.
We’re meat eaters but when I flicked through this book, I drooled and then I cooked! It’s full of recipes using winter seasonal vegetables. I’ve roasted cauliflowers, potatoes, pumpkin, made zucchini frittatas and roasted mushrooms. Each recipe, focusing on one vegetable, has three or four variations.
I roasted large mushrooms with garlic, thyme, EVO oil and red wine vinegar.
I made the Roasted Pumpkin and Rosemary Crumble, using a jap pumpkin and the crumble made from panko breadcrumbs, wholegrain mustard, chopped up rosemary, pine nuts and butter. The second time I made it I substituted plain sourdough breadcrumbs and chopped walnuts as I ran out of panko crumbs and pine nuts. Other crumbles in the book are Miso Chilli Pumpkin, Lebanese Spiced Pumpkin and Pumpkin and Gremolata. Crunch and contrast against the creamy flavour of the pumpkin.
I baked a Whole Cauliflower in vegetable stock, coated with a mix of smoked paprika, garlic, parmesan and butter, and before serving cut into wedges, sprinkled with parsley. Very, very popular!
Roasted a tray of potatoes following their recipe and they were very good, too.
I used a leftover wedge of cauliflower in a little puddle of stock and some roasted pumpkin to make soup. I boiled the veg with some extra vegetable stock and when everything was soft, I Barmixed it. Thick luscious soup served with some leftover crumble from the baking dish.
This large softcover book is full of recipes for readily available vegetables. I’ll be dipping into this for some time to come!
Pages marked for entertaining and this weekends cooking.
OTHER THINGS
Made and froze two trays of pasties for lunches during our wet and cold season.
The 29th of July will be International Tiger Day, founded after an international summit in 2010 revealed that 92% of wild tigers disappeared last century with only about 3000 left alive. Factors being highlighted included the impact of habitat loss, hunting and poaching.