Asian glazed salmon with sesame roast vegetables and quick pickled cucumbers

This “warmish” salad has become something of an unintentional fixture in my current cooking repertoire. I love how the soy sauce and miso salty-umami flavours cut through the richness of the fish – a far cry from my first experiences of eating salmon baked in a bed of puff pastry. Despite the fact salmon is definitely a rich meat, this makes it the perfect vehicle for the pickled cucumbers and loads of vegetables for freshness.

Because this salad is best served lukewarm/room temperature, it is easy to prepare in advance if hosting a group for lunch or casual summer dinner. I often pick up the fresh salmon tails or cut pieces from my supermarket as they are often on special despite only being packed that day – in which case I buy enough for four servings and make enough for lunches later. There are certainly a few components to this dish, however I think it would be a shame not to include them all as they work so well together.

shamelessly good shakshoukah

Serving this shakshoukah was my Sunday saving grace. Without this deliciously spicy baked egg number to provide me with the satisfaction of next level stay-at-home brunching, I’m afraid the latter half of my weekend would have been vastly less fulfilling (my attempts at napping twice were pathetic at best and I cleared my Gmail inbox out of over 4,000 messages dating back to 2005). I know something must taste good when I instantly want to share it with other people – so here you are, hastily snapped iPhone photo and all. I was far too busy demolishing my plate with a voracious appetite to grab my camera and haphazardly attempt to style the dish during the glorious eating process.

I’ve never made shakshoukah before – I think something about having to do two things and open a tin of tomatoes put me off, and now I’m seriously wondering why. With a handy pair hands nearby to cut the onions so I didn’t have to do any of the crying (seriously, it’s profuse and unfortunately not at all cathartic), it was nearly as easy as simply frying up my usual bacon and eggs. Perhaps what’s put me off further is that I’ve also never had a particularly amazing rendition of what I feel is its true potential when I have ordered it out at a restaurant – the tomato never quite reduced enough, the chorizo more sausage than Spanish vehicle for salty spiciness. I went all out in preparation for this, purchasing my very own “chorizo hot piece” imported from Spain for the experience.

smoked salmon and preserved lemon frittata

Egg bakes are one of the easiest, most nutritious ways to make four portions of main meals. The additions of smoked salmon with the salty, citrus bite of the preserved lemon makes these eggs taste next level – to the point where I have brought this along for night shift and quite happily consumed it on four consecutive occasions.

I’m a huge advocate for lazy, one bowl situations for meal preparation, and this dish here is no exception. I’m obviously not coming up with anything new – a frittata is a frittata, after all, but I can’t overemphasise how great a combination the fish and preserved citrus are together. I’ve had the two things lying about in the fridge for a while (another bonus) – both bought on special and keep forever – and so ultimately very little effort was taken here. Previously when I’ve been throwing together egg bakes I’ve used cheese to cut through the obvious “egginess” of the eggs, but with the lemons finely chopped throughout, there’s really no need. I’m not just catering to dietary restrictions here (dairy free, paleo, primal, low carb, pescatarian) – this is simply delicious in general.

cauliflower rice “paella”

This is not a paella by any stretch of the Spanish imagination, as it is clearly missing its integral rice component. To call it by any other name, however, and I couldn’t convey how it tastes nearly as good.

(Let it be noted, however, that it is in fact primal/paleo/keto friendly/low carb/gluten free/dairy free, but don’t let that put you off)

Evidently, it’s not all treats around here. I’ve subbed out rice for cauliflower – one of my favourite, fart-stench-creating-to-prepare low carb substitutes. I absolutely love the taste of rice – to the point where I have previously claimed it to be one of my favourite carbohydrates, but thankfully with the caramelised prawns and spicy chorizo to contend with, I don’t miss it here. It even reheats beautifully – however there was certainly none left when I served this to my parents while I was home for the weekend.

the ultimate protein/low carb hot cakes

At the end of 2012, I went from deliberating over which protein powder to buy for weeks because I had no idea what the difference was between whey and casein, and moreover, the obviously huge effect 23g protein/serve vs. 24g, to happily eating up to three serves of the stuff on a daily basis. I would eat protein powder in shake, sludge and pancake form, multiple times a day. To be completely honest, the pancakes that I made back then were dry and borderline inedible, and not like pancakes at all.

These are a little different (read: fluffy and akin to a pancake), thanks to a few tweaks. Separating the eggs and beating the whites at room temperature is utterly essential, along with the addition of a high fat, slightly sour dairy product to make the batter lighter and fluffier. The xanthan gum is a kind of celiac rite of passage to purchase when you get diagnosed – it acts as a binder when using gluten free flours, but is also great for thickening any kind of batter or smoothie. There are so many low carb pancake recipes, perhaps most notably the crepe-type involving cream cheese and eggs. My favourite McDonald’s breakfast was always the hotcakes with whipped butter as a child, and these are it, in low carb, full fat form.

chicken and aubergine tray bake with cauliflower rice “tabouleh”

I made a terrible mistake in the preparation of this dish in that I purchased chicken breasts for protein. It’s not so much that I dislike chicken breast as I prefer pretty much every other cut of chicken to it. Generally when I’m meal prepping (as I did with this dish) with chicken, I will use boneless, skinless chicken thighs for ease, but a bonier cut such as a whole butterflied chicken or even just legs or drumsticks would work well and add more flavour. Chicken breast is fine, darker meat is delicious.

I suppose this recipe may end up looking a bit involved for something I actually intended to just have lying around for leftover dinner prior to leaving for night shift. It is highly likely that if I’d read it in a magazine I would have 100% skipped past it because it calls for more than one cooking vessel. However, once the bake is in the oven, there is very little to do for the cauliflower to make it the perfect little salad to balance out the meal. This is unsurprisingly one of those meals that gets better the longer you leave it, and so it was utterly marvellous to prepare for low effort dinners. I’d call it versatile enough to even serve to guests (especially as it can be prepared well in advance), but I think that’s just because it tastes really good. The bake itself is incredibly flavoursome. Beyond simply serving it alongside this fresh, citrus based salad, I would suggest a yoghurt-based accompaniment.

Some of the ingredients (preserved lemons, za’atar, pomegranate molasses) are not exactly typical kitchen staples, but I promise that they all hang about long enough for you to experiment and experience their deliciousness in other dishes also.

never-to-be-store-bought-again aioli

I really have no excuse as to why I have never properly attempted to make my own mayonnaise before beyond the convenience of reaching for the Best Foods. I’ve read many a recipe, bookmarked a few, bothered never. Until now. My saying that it’s entirely worth the effort (this isn’t hard: very little is required) isn’t enough: just do it, taste it for yourself and see. Further adding to its merits? It’s low carb and absolutely zero sugar. Marvellous.

christmas ham and brie omelette

Leftover ham is pretty ubiquitous after Christmas events, right? We hosted a barbecue at our apartment a few weeks ago and a fortnight later, the leg was still kicking around (albeit looking a little worse for wear), despite being carved up generously to serve sixteen people. While it kept pretty well for the first week, by the second it was looking a bit dry and unappealing. I made this omelette variation at least twice, and it would be a surefire way to feed the masses on boxing day whilst clearing out the fridge from looking like a yuletide hangover amidst unwanted rum balls with too many raisins, brandy butter that was left out in the sun, etc. etc.

I’ve only really persevered with making half-decent omelettes recently. Previously I’ve been inclined to throw in the towel prematurely and call it a scramble. However, I think there’s a certain elegance to being able to fold the cooked egg in half, sliding it onto the plate with the delicious fillings (ugh, I can’t find a good word to use here, oozing, seeping, all seem far too revolting) melting out. I would probably eat them for any meal of the day – and in fact, I have done.

For 1 omelette (multiply as needed to serve a group):

• 3 eggs, beaten lightly with a fork
• ~100g ham off the bone, thinly carved
• 50-70g brie, thinly sliced
• Small handful roughly chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• A little butter to oil the pan (I used Whitestone manuka smoked butter)
• (I also served mine alongside asparagus fried in the butter alluded to above)

1. I prepped my vegetable side in advance (asparagus in butter because they are in season, but this would also go well with fresh watercress, fried mushrooms, rocket/arugula), frying the fresh asparagus until browned in the smoker butter.
2. In the same small nonstick pan, melt a pat of the smoked butter before pouring in the beaten eggs over a medium heat. Arrange the ham and brie to cover (don’t worry about overlapping) one half of the eggs before seasoning with salt, pepper and sprinkling with the herbs.
3. Allow the egg to cook enough that the omelette is starting to set around the edges and if you lift to check on the base, it’s looking a little ~bronzed~. This means it’s ready to flip! With a fish slice, get under the half of omelette without toppings and fold it over the ham and brie. Press down to set it in place and leave to cook a little longer so it can set.
4. Slide onto plate, serve, eat. This entire process takes ~5 minutes tops – if serving multiple people, ideally have more than one pan of the same size on the go at once, or at least have your oven on warm so plates can be kept ready for serving.