Jeff's Middle Eastern lentils

Serves 4:
6 tbsp olive oil
6 onions, halved and finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground allspice
5 cups water or vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups brown lentils, washed and drained
1 cup rice, washed and drained
1 cup plain yoghurt
Fresh mint sprigs, to garnish

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large saucepan over medium heat.

Add one onion, garlic, cumin, cinnamon and allspice and saute for four minutes until onion is softened and lightly coloured.

Add water (or stock) and lentils and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Stir in rice, return to boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and cook until liquid has been absorbed and rice and lentils are tender, about 15 minutes.

Season well with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, heat remaining oil in pan and cook remaining onions until soft, well coloured and beginning to caramelise and blacken at the edges, about 30 minutes.

Arrange rice and lentils on a platter and sprinkle with caramelised onion. Serve with yoghurt and mint.

Vietnamese chicken salad

For 4 serves:

1 crappy (or 1/2 good) Chinese cabbage, sliced

2 carrots, grated

2 big handfuls coriander, chopped

1 big handful mint, chopped

Handful toasted peanuts, chopped

4 spring onions, chopped & fried

Poached chicken

Blitz:

1 chilli

3 cloves garlic

Small knob of ginger

2 spring onions

2 Tbsp (15ml) brown sugar

3 Tbsp EVO oil

Stir through:

2 Tbsp fish sauce

1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

3 Tbsp lemon or lime juice

Spicy Aussie pork burgers

6 burgers:
750g pork mince

1 Tbsp curry powder

1 egg

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1/4 cup desiccated coconut

3 garlic cloves

Salt

Mix, shape into 6 big flat patties and BBQ or fry.

Serve with well-cooked onion and grilled pineapple.

Blueberry cheesecake french toast

For 4 sandwiches:
8 slices day old brioche (or white bread)
150g cream cheese
2 Tbsp (20ml) caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup blueberries
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cream
1 tsp cinnamon
Butter for frying
Icing sugar, maple syrup and fresh blueberries to serve

Mix cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Stir through blueberries and spread on half the bread. Top with the other half.

Heat a frying pan with a knob of butter. Beat milk, cream, egg and cinnamon together. Rest each side of the sandwiches in the mixture for about 30 seconds. Fry about 4 minutes each side until golden brown.

If using, garnish with fresh berries. Dust with icing sugar & drizzle with maple syrup.

Baked carrot cake oatmeal

For 4 sensible or 2 silly serves, mix together:
1 cup oats

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp cardamom

Handful saltanas

1 leg carrot, grated

Pour over:
1 egg, beaten & mixed with
1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

For the topping, stir together:

1/2 cup walnuts &

1/3 cup sunflower seeds in processor

2 Tbsp maple syrup

2 tsp coconut oil

170C, 25 mins.

Jeff's margaritas!

2 parts tequila (Patron silver)
1 part Cointreau
1 part lemon juice
ice
salt

Banana granola

For four big serves:

1.5 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup raw almonds, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 tsp vanilla extract or ground vanilla
1 pinch sea salt
1 tbsp (20ml) coconut oil, room temperature
1 tbsp (20ml) maple syrup or honey
1 very ripe banana

Preheat the oven 200°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
In a large bowl, combine oats, almonds, pumpkin seeds, vanilla and salt. In a separate bowl add coconut oil, maple and bananas. Use your hands to mix the ingredients completely smooth. Add the banana mixture to the dry mixture and combine well, using your hands, for about a minute, so all is well-coated and clumpy. Turn out and spread the granola in an even layer on the baking tray. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, taking it out at around 10 minutes to turn the granola over with a wooden spoon.

Banana & salted caramel ice cream

For the salted caramel sauce:

100g caster sugar

125ml pure cream

15g butter

1/2 tsp sea salt flakes

For the ice cream:

2 super ripe bananas (really ripe - important!)

250ml pure cream

195g sweetened condensed milk (half a 395g tin)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

To make the caramel, in a heavy-based pan over low heat, add the sugar in an even layer then leave to melt into an amber-coloured caramel. Meanwhile, heat up the cream gently in a separate pan and keep warm.

Cook sugar until it’s a darkish brown golden colour.

When it’s ready, take it off the heat and add the warmed cream. It’ll bubble up furiously so be careful. When that settles, stir through the butter.

The caramel may seize and harden so just stick it back over the low heat and stir gently until everything has melted into a sauce. Stir through the salt to taste then allow to cool completely.

For the ice cream, mash up the bananas until smooth. Beat the cream & vanilla until soft peaks then gently fold through the condensed milk until mostly combined. Fold through the banana mash.

Scrape half the batter into a loaf tin (or any container you wish). Dollop in some cooled caramel then swirl through the ice cream mixture. Add the remaining ice cream over the top then swirl through more caramel to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 4 or 5 hours or overnight.

Next time, try adding some chopped roasted peanuts.

Warm bacon, lentil & mushroom thingo

For two meals:
2 rashes of bacon
3 cloves of garlic
2 big mushrooms
fresh red chilli (optional)
1 tin lentils
cup of frozen peas
1 Tbsp (20ml) apple cidar vinegar
salt
pepper
EVO oil

Roasted broccoli

1 head of broccoli

3 cloves garlic, minced

ginger (optional) minced

red chili, chopped (or dried)

Olive oil

1 Tbsp tahini
1/2 tin chickpeas (optional)

Slivered almonds

Oven at 200C.

Toss broccoli in remaining ingredients (except almonds) & roast 15 minutes. Add almonds in last 7 minutes.