This combination of Garlic, Chilli and Dill Prawns with wholemeal flatbread crisped up in a dry frying pan was a delicious.
Quick and tasty starter or add a green salad and make it a meal!
Garlic Prawns with crispy flatbread
Category: appetiser
Curry Puffs with mince and peas
These easy to make curry puffs are a great starter for any festive occasion. So popular i almost missed getting a photo of them before they were gone at our Christmas lunch today.
Using the same filling as my samosas. But much quicker and easier to make using store-bought puff pastry.
They are delicious wrapped in the buttery goodness of puff pastry too.
A sure fire winner as an appetiser.
I make them into bite-sized parcels of deliciousness but you can vary the size and shape to your liking.
Use the filling recipe from the samosa recipe below:
Coconut Chilli Prawn Rolls
These coconut chilli prawn rolls are so quick and easy to make…but are delicious and impressive as a starter or canapé. Beats making normal spring rolls.
Paired with a citrus lime Mayo dipping sauce, they bring together the best of coconut coated prawns and garlic chilli prawns all in one neat wrapping.
You could easily change the flavours and textures by using other spices to the prawns.
Ingredients:
- 12 green prawns, shelled amd deveined with tail left on
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 red chilli
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- Toasted coconut flakes or toasted desiccated coconut
- Oil for deep frying
- 6 square sheets spring roll pastry
- 1 tablespoon flour or cornflour
- 2-3 teaspoons water
- 3 tablespoons whole egg mayonaise
- Juice of half a lime
Method:
1, Peel and devein green prawns, keeping tails intact
2. Smash up garlic, chilli with salt in a mortar and pestle to form a paste
3. Marinate prawns with paste, can put into fridge for an hour or two if you have time
4. Defrost spring roll pastry according to packet instructions. Make flour glue by mixing flour with water in a small bowl.
5. Take one sheet of spring roll pastry, slice in half, corner to corner, diagonally, to make 2 even triangles.
6. Turn one half of pastry so long edge perpendicular to board, then place prawn with just the tail hanging out on sheet as close to you as possible that it will fit.
7. Sprinkle prawn with toasted coconut flakes or desiccated coconut. (If using desiccated coconut, toast in pan first and cool before adding.)
8. Fold over triangular end of pastry, roll up prawn in rest of pastry, and secure with flour glue.
9. Keep rolls in fridge until you are ready to deep fry and serve.
10. Deep fry until pastry is golden brown for 2-3 minutes. Drain on paper towel.
11. For citrus mayonaise mix 3 tablespoons of mayonaise with the juice of half a lime and mix well until lime juice is integrated with mayonaise to make a silky dipping sauce.
Bocconcini and Spinach Salad with Pickled Red Onion
Tired of the usual bocconcini and tomato salad? The addition of quickly pickled red onions in balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt certainly is a pick me up!
I layered it on a bed of baby spinach leaves, sliced tomato, sliced baby bocconcini and then dressed with olive oil before scattering over the quick pickled onions, the remaining balsamic, and a sprinkling of torn baby basil leaves and a grind of black pepper.
Here’s a recipe for pickling red onions Simply delicious pickled red onion
If you prefer a more traditional version, this Bocconcini , tomato, spinach wreath is great all year round and looks very festive.
A feast of love! ❤️
Our dear friends renewed their vows today after many years of being in love. It was a beautiful ceremony accompanied by a beautiful feast!
Great ideas here for how to create a visually appetising and stunning buffet for any occasion.
Burrata with fennel jam, spinach and tomato #burrata #fennel
This Burrata with fennel jam and spinach, with a hint of chilli, was delicious as an accompaniment for dinner tonight.
I was inspired by the Burrata with fennel jam at lunch at Nomad restaurant in Surry Hills in Sydney this week. There it is swimming in fennel flavoured olive oil and served with their delicious crusty sour dough to mop it up.
My version of the fennel jam doesn’t involve quite as much oil, and I added one chilli to the fennel mixture during the cooking to add a kick of spice.
I also teamed up the Burrata and fennel jam with baby spinach leaves and cherry tomatoes to make it much more of a salad.
The resulting combination was really good, and perfect as an accompaniment to our steak tonight. It would also make for a great addition to a buffet or a festive meal. Great to share amongst a few people.
Mind you, you could add more oil and skip the healthy ingredients and serve it just as Nomad restaurant do! Or you could just use the fennel jam as a great accompaniment to cheese or a charcuterie platter.
Burrata with fennel jam, spinach and tomatoes.
- Ingredients
- 1 small onion finely sliced
- 1 bulb fennel finely sliced
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white sugar
- 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 or 2 fresh red chillies chopped in large pieces
- 1/2 bag of baby spinach leaves
- 10-12 Cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- 1 large single Burrata ( take out of fridge 10,minutes before serving)
- Pepper to taste
- Fennel fronds for garnish
Method
1. Slice fennel and onion as thinly as possible, reserve some of the fennel fronds for garnish.
2. Heat oil in large flat, non-stick frying pan, add fennel and onion, lower heat to medium heat and cook slowly until fennel and onion start to soften for about 5 minutes.
3. Add chilli and cook for another 5 minutes.
4. Add sugar and vinegar, stirring until sugar dissolves.
5. Continue cooking until vinegar evaporates and the sugar creates almost a glaze on the fennel and onions.
6. Place baby spinach leaves and tomatoes on a platter, sprinkle cracked black pepper over the leaves and tomatoes, spread fennel jam over the centre.
7. Place Burrata on the top, garnish with a few fennel fronds and serve.
