Pink Grapefruit, Prawn & Toasted Coconut Salad

I've spent a lot of my time over the last few weeks decluttering.  Like a woman possessed, I have bit by bit gone through every room and cupboard in the house, having a major clean-out of all that stuff I've been hanging onto "just in case" it's ever needed one day.

I have spoken to my yoga students often about staying in the present, living in the moment, and yet despite that I have managed to surround myself with a whole lot of stuff because of some attachment to a time long past, or possible need in some uncertain future.  It's ridiculous, it doesn't amount to staying present, and it's all been suffocating me.

I have to say I'm surprised how long it's taken to work my way through the house, and I'm not finished yet (there's still the bathroom and kitchen cupboards) to go, but I guess I'm not going to deal with 40 years of accumulated clap-trap in five minutes.  Now don't get me wrong, it's not like I would have made an ideal candidate for "World's Greatest Hoarders", but there was a lot of stuff.

There's no doubt this is an incredibly freeing process - it's given me a real sense of lightening the load, and allowing space for change.

So what does all of this have to do with this dish?  Well, part of my decluttering process has extended to trying to give the freezer a bit of a clean-out, wherein I found a bag of prawns that needed to be used up.  Since we have another Mystery Box Challenge this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs, which requires us to make a dish from anyone of our IHCC chefs using at least three of these ingredients: potatoes, buttermilk, flour, paprika, onion, leafy greens, lemon, honey, prawns, and feta - it seemed like the ideal time to use those prawns.

I'd had Diana Henry's recipe in A Change of Appetite for A Warm Salad of Pink Grapefruit, Prawns, and Toasted Coconut bookmarked for quite a while, and since with a little adaptation the recipe enabled me to use prawns, leafy greens and honey, this looked like the perfect dish to meet the mystery box challenge.

I made only very minimal changes to the recipe, briefly oven-roasting the prawns instead of pan frying them, since I always look for any opportunity I can to avoid standing over a frying pan, and for a bit of extra kick I added some red pepper flakes to the prawns while the roasted.  I also replaced sugar in the dressing with honey, and replaced groundnut oil with a combination of olive oil and sesame oil.

This made a wonderful light meal, absolutely bursting with flavour and interesting texture - soft, velvety leaves provide a cooling background to spicy prawns and the citrusy, sweet-tart burst of the grapefruit, accompanied by the crunch of the coconut, peanuts and sesame seeds.  This is definitely a dish I can see myself repeating often over the remainder of summer - I can even see it inspiring a few variations.

Pink Grapefruit, Prawn & Toasted Coconut Salad Recipe
Adapted (barely) from recipe by Diana Henry
from A Change of Appetite
Serves 2 as a light meal

for the dressing:
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil

for the salad:
2x pink grapefruit
1 cup shaved coconut from a fresh coconut
1 tablespoon olive oil
350g (12 oz) fresh prawns, shelled & deveined
red pepper flakes
flaky sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
leafy salad greens
bunch of fresh mint leaves
1x red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
large handful roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (360 degrees F).

Begin by making the dressing.  Place all the ingredients in a small jug, whisk to combine, and set aside.

Prepare the grapefruit - remove the peel and all the white pith from the grapefruit, then, working over a bowl, remove the segments by running a sharp knife between the membrane and the flesh on each side of the segment to release the segment.  Discard the membrane, set the flesh aside.

Using a hammer or the back of a heavy knife, break the coconut shell open and prise out the flesh.  Using a vegetable peeler, shave the coconut into thin slices.  Dry fry the shaved coconut in a pan over medium heat until golden.  This happens quickly, so don't leave the kitchen.

In a bowl toss together the prawns, olive oil, generous pinch of red pepper flakes, flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Spread prawns in a single layer in an ovenproof dish and roast in the preheated oven until cooked through - this only takes a few minutes.

Remove from the oven and immediately toss with the grapefruit segments, red chilli and half the dressing.

Arrange salad greens and mint on serving plates, and arrange prawns and grapefruit amongst the salad leaves.  Scatter toasted coconut, peanuts, and sesame seeds over the top, and drizzle with the remaining dressing.

Serve immediately.

If you would like to get to know Diana Henry a little better, and to see what everyone else has cooked up this week, then do go and visit my friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs and check out the links (who knows, you might even want to join the journey and cook along with us) ...

... or check out A Change of Appetite and Diana's many other great titles available from Amazon USA, Amazon UK, or Fishpond NZ.

Tea Cup Steamed Ginger Coconut Cakes

This week at I Heart Cooking Clubs our theme is "Time for Tea" - creating Donna Hay recipes which are perfect to enjoy with a cup of tea, are inspired by tea drinking, or even use tea as an ingredient.

I have to say that Donna has literally dozens and dozens of recipes that would fit the bill, so narrowing the choice down was by far the hardest part of this challenge.

Leafing through my copy of "Dining" (which is now published as "Entertaining"), I came across these Tea Cup Steamed Coconut Cakes.  Donna prepared hers in little Chinese tea cups, but I chose to use a selection of these gorgeous little demi-tasse cups which used to belong to my mother.

I made a few minor changes to the recipe:  I replaced the 1/2 cup of white sugar and 1/4 cup of palm sugar called for in the original recipe with 1/2 cup of coconut sugar, and I added some ground ginger for a little extra flavour.

The coconut sugar brought beautiful caramel flavours to these little cakes, which were very easy to put together (even for a non-baker like me), and they made a delicious afternoon treat with a cup of jasmine tea.  I also loved that, by virtue of these little cakes being steamed, I didn't need to use the oven on a hot and sunny afternoon.

Tea Cup Steamed Ginger & Coconut Cakes Recipe

Adapted from recipe by Donna Hay

from Entertaining

Makes 6-8 (depending on size of your cups)

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

4x free range eggs

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1-1/4 cups self raising flour

3 tablespoons dessicated coconut

Place eggs and sugar in a medium sized bowl and, using an electric mixer, beat mixture until it is light and thick - about 8-10 minutes.

Gently fold the sifted flour and ginger, along with the coconut, into the mixture.

Spoon the mixture into lightly greased small tea cups, and place cups in a steamer over boiling water.

Cover and steam until the cakes are puffed and firm - 10-15 minutes depending on the size of your cups.

Serve with jasmine tea.

If you would like to get to know Donna Hay a little better, and to see all the fabulous tea-inspired dishes my friends have come up with, then do go visit I Heart Cooking Clubs and check out the links.

I will also be submitting this post to Sweet New Zealand.  Inspired by Alessandra Zecchini, Sweet New Zealand is an event for all Kiwi bloggers (whether living at home or abroad), or all foreign bloggers living in New Zealand, to link up their sweet treats.  This month, the event is also hosted by Alessandra.

I'll also be sharing this post this week at See Ya In the Gumbo hosted by the lovely Michelle at Ms. enPlace, Weekend Cooking hosted by Beth at Beth Fish Reads, at Cook your Books hosted by Joyce at Kitchen Flavours, and at Foodie Fridays hosted by Designs by Gollam.

              

Salted Caramel Coconut Macaroons

When my brother and I were kids, a popular summer outing for our family was a day trip to Hamilton for a picnic at the lake.  Although the drive between Auckland and Hamilton these days is pretty much motorway all the way, and probably takes about 45 minutes, back in the day it was mostly a single lane (in each direction) highway and the journey took the best part of an hour and a half.

Now any of you who are parents will know that 90 minutes in a hot car (there was no air-con in cars back then) with a couple of kids in the back (who are either intent on murdering each other before reaching the destination, or driving you insane with the incessant "are we nearly there yet?" whine), is no fun ... no fun at all.

As luck would have it though, round about the half-way point in the journey (that stage where tempers are running so high, I suspect that if my brother and I hadn't killed each other first, one of our parents might have been tempted to finish the job), Shands Bakery would appear on the horizon.  Without hesitation, Dad would swerve off the highway into the bakery car park, whereupon we would all pile out of the car and collect fresh bread for the picnic and a large bag of coconut macaroons.

Now we would never normally be allowed to indulge in such a treat so close to lunchtime, but parents are wise creatures ... those coconut macaroons were so moist and chewy, and so big (each one about the size of a small child's fist) that one of those babies could be guaranteed to keep an annoying child quiet for the remaining 45 minutes of the journey!!  Of course, there were always a couple kept in reserve for the return journey.

In adult years, I often think of those macaroons (not to be confused with macarons) - little mounds of egg white, coconut and sugar, baked until golden on the outside but still moist and chewy on the inside - and thought I'd like to make them.  So when our theme this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs turned out to be "Fill The Tins" (baked treats to fill the tins for the holiday season or to give as gifts), I was reminded of those macaroons and felt sure that Donna Hay would be able to help me out.  In Fast, Fresh, Simple I came across Donna's recipe for Coconut Macroon Ice Cream Sandwiches.  The macaroons sounded like they would fit the bill, but filled with ice cream probably wasn't going to work in the biscuit tin!  That was when I got to thinking that a salted caramel filling would be perfect with the chewy coconut biscuits, and would make a delightfully indulgent treat.

I hope you enjoy these as a treat to spoil yourself with a decent cup of coffee, or as gift to spoil someone else.

Salted Caramel Coconut Macaroons Recipe

Adapted from a recipe by Donna Hay

from Fast, Fresh, Simple

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

For coconut macaroons:

2 egg whites

2 cups dessicated coconut

1/2 cup sugar

For salted caramel filling:

1/2 cup sugar

70g (2-1/2 oz) butter

1/4 cup cream

generous pinch flaky sea salt

Begin by making the macaroons.  Preheat oven to 160 degrees C (320 degrees F).

In a medium sized bowl, very lightly whisk egg whites just until slightly "loosened".  Stir in coconut and sugar, and mix well until everything is thoroughly combined.

Scoop up heaped tablespoons of the mixture, and using your hands press the mixture together into a small disc.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet, and once all the mixture has been used, place baking sheet in the preheated oven.

Bake until golden, about 10-12 minutes.  Remove from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack before filling.

Now to make the filling.  Place sugar in a medium-sized heavy bottomed saucepan, set over medium heat, and without stirring allow the sugar to dissolve and take on a caramel colour.  Remove from the heat and carefully stir in the cream - it will bubble up vigorously, so be careful.  Return pan to the heat and keep stirring for about a minute, until completely smooth.  Add the butter and salt, turn off heat, and keep stirring for another minute again until completely smooth and butter is fully integrated.  Pour into a small bowl or jug and refrigerate until cold and spreadable.

To assemble, spread a spoonful of caramel on the underside of one macaroon, and press another macaroon on top.

If you would like to get to know Donna Hay a little better, and to see all the wonderful treats my friends have been filling the tins with, then do go visit I Heart Cooking Clubs and check out the links.

I will also be submitting this post to Sweet New Zealand.  Inspired by Alessandra Zecchini, Sweet New Zealand is an event for all Kiwi bloggers (whether living at home or abroad), or all foreign bloggers living in New Zealand, to link up their sweet treats.  This month, Sweet New Zealand is hosted by Alice at Alice in Bakingland.

I'll also be sharing this post this week at See Ya In the Gumbo hosted by the lovely Michelle at Ms. enPlace, Weekend Cooking hosted by Beth at Beth Fish Reads, at Cook Your Books hosted by Joyce at Kitchen Flavours, and at Foodie Fridays hosted by Designs by Gollam.

               

Tropical Fruit Granola

Let me begin by telling you, and this has absolutely nothing to do with granola, that last night we watched When Harry Met Sally - for the umpteenth time I might add, but there was not much else on and it's one of those movies that's always worth another watch, if only for the fake orgasm scene in Katz's Deli.  Anyways, it disturbed me as I was watching to realise that during the course of the 80s and 90s I wore every single one of the hair-dos Sally paraded in the movie - many of them cringe-worthy when I look back.

Such are the things we do over the years as we struggle to develop our personal style - or certainly so it was for me.  Took me I think the best part of 48 years to really get comfortable in my own skin, and to realise what my own style was without trying to make myself look good in someone else's.

Breakfast is like that.  I know all the rhetoric, which is no doubt backed up by plenty of sound nutritional research, about breakfast being the most important meal of the day.  I'm well acquainted with the expression "eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper".  And, I've spent many years trying to follow that advice.  But the reality is that I am just not a breakfast person - not even a morning person, in fact.  The truth is that given the choice I prefer not to rise to a vertical position before 10 am at the earliest, and midday is ideal.  Of course, there are jobs to go to and languishing between the sheets till noon is not always an option.  But no matter how early I do get up I generally like a lapse of a couple of hours to pass between the bed and the breakfast table, by which time of course it often is pretty much lunch time.

Then, of course, the dilemna arises of what to eat - lunch or breakfast.  French toast (check out my Chocolate Panettone French Toast Sandwiches and Caramelised French Toast with Raspberry Compote) and pancakes are popular choices, as is this granola.  Work day mornings, I will on rare occasions scarf down a slice of toast and marmalade before racing out the door, but I'm just as likely to skip breakfast, throw a couple of handfuls of this granola into a tub and take it to work with me for lunch.

This granola is a breeze to make, better than anything you will pick up at the supermarket, cheaper and minus the fat too, and it's loaded with nuts and tropical fruit.  I like to use cashews and almonds, along with cranberries, apricots, figs, dates, mango and papaya, but really you can use any combination you like.  Hope you give this a try I know you won't be disappointed.

Tropical Fruit Granola Recipe

Click here for a printable copy of this recipe

6 cups rolled oats

1 cup almonds

1 cup cashew nuts

(you can substitute these with 2 cups of any nuts or seeds that you like - pecans, walnuts, macadamias, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds would all be good)

1 cup shredded coconut

(go for long thread or even better flaked coconut - avoid dessicated)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

generous pinch of salt

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup agave nectar

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 cups dried fruit of your choice

(cranberries, figs, dates, cherries, papaya, apricots, mango, pears, peaches, raisins, sultanas are all good - cut larger fruit into smaller pieces)

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (300 degrees F).

Put the rolled oats into a large bowl.  Add the nuts, coconut, cinnamon, ginger and salt.  Pour the honey, agave nectar and maple syrup over the dry ingredients and using your hands mix everything together well.

Spread everything out in a thin layer in a shallow baking tray (you may need to use a couple of trays), and put into the preheated oven.  Bake until golden brown.  This will take approximately 20 to 30 minutes, depending on how "toasty" you like it, but keep in mind that it will continue cooking after you take it out of the oven, so take care not to over do it.  Give it a bit of a stir every 10 minutes during cooking.

Once toasted to your liking remove from the oven and allow to cool.  Add your dried fruit and mix well, then transfer to an airtight container for storage.

I sometimes also throw in a handful of yoghurt covered raisins at this stage, and would even consider chocolate coated raisins or peanuts acceptable inclusions for an indulgent treat.

I can enjoy this as a wee snack, by the handful, straight out of the jar, or eaten on its own simply moistened with a bit of fruit juice (personally not too fussed on milk).  It is also great with fresh or stewed fruit, and some Greek-style natural yoghurt.  You could even use this to make your favourite granola bars.

I sharing this post with Sweet New Zealand, a monthly blog event created by the very lovely Alessandra Zecchini, and which this month is hosted by After Taste. This is an opportunity for all Kiwi bloggers (whether you are living in New Zealand or overseas), as well as for non-Kiwi bloggers living in New Zealand, to connect and share some of those sweet treats from your kitchen.  So, head on over and share something sweet.

I'm also sharing this at Foodie Fridays hosted by Designs by Gollum.

Chicken, Coconut & Cashew Nut Curry

It was bound to happen sooner or later - a Tessa Kiros recipe that left me feeling a little disappointed.

Our theme this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs, where we are spending six months cooking the recipes of Tessa Kiros, was "Some Like it Hot ... and Spicy!" - an opportunity to heat things up with a bit of chilli, or introduce some warming spices to a heart-warming dessert or sweet treat.

I toyed with the idea of making Tessa's Cinnamon & Cardamom Buns, a recipe which has been on my radar ever since Kim made them right back in week one, and Natashya made them last week.  But in the end Tessa's recipe for Chicken, Coconut & Cashew Nut Curry, which I'd had bookmarked ever since I bought the book Falling Cloudberries, seemed like just the thing for a quick, flavourful, mid-week dinner.

To be honest, I wish I'd stuck with the buns, since both Kim and Natashya raved about them, and I find myself falling a long way short of being able to rave about this recipe.  Now don't get me wrong - it wasn't terrible or objectionable - but when you are used to eating and making a lot of Indian food, as I am, it just fell rather short.  Despite the variety of spices in here, the flavours were somehow not fully rounded out and felt a little unbalanced, and the gravy failed to thicken and emulsify as it should have.

I think, however, the recipe is not beyond redemption.  I would make this again, but there are a number of modifications that I would make which I think would improve it considerably.  Below I have recorded the recipe from the book, as that is what I made, and then at the end I have included my notes for what I would do to improve this.  I'm going to make my improved version next week, so I'll be sure to let you know how that goes.

Don't you love the way I managed to capture my own reflection in the bowl - try cloning that out!!

Chicken, Coconut & Cashew Nut Curry

Recipe by Tessa Kiros from

Falling Cloudberries

Serves 3-4

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

pinch freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

4 cloves

1 bay leaf

1 heaped tablespoon garam masala

pinch freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1.25 kg (2lb 12oz) chicken thighs, skinned, boned & flesh diced

(use bone-in thighs for better flavour)

2 onions, finely diced

salt

45g (1-1/2 oz) dessicated coconut

70g (2-1/2 oz) roasted, unsalted cashews

1 cup plain yoghurt

Dry roast the coriander, cumin, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf and garam masala and black pepper in a non-stick pan set over high heat.  Stir-fry until fragrant - just a couple of minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan, and brown the chicken and onions (you may have to do this in batches).  Add the spices, stirring until fragrant, and making sure all the chicken and onions are well coated with the spice mix.  Season generously with the salt.  Add the coconut and 2 cups water, bring to the boil.

Reduce the heat, cover the pan, and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring from time to time.  Cut the cashew nuts in half, add to the pan and cook for a further 10 minutes.  (Tessa suggests adding more water, if it looks as though it needs it - I think that's unlikely, if anything I found it too watery)

Lastly, stir in the yoghurt.  Simmer for another minute or two without allowing it to come to a boil.  Serve with steamed, buttered, basmati rice.

My recommended changes:

1. Replace ground spices with whole spices
2. I would suggest replacing the nutmeg with a cinnamon stick, and substituting the ground pepper with half a dozen dried red chillies.
3. Cut the onion back to just one, but add a dozen garlic cloves and a knob of ginger, to round out the flavour a bit more.
4. Increase the amount of coconut - probably about double, and increase the amount of cashew nuts - again probably at least double.
5. Dry roast the wholes spices, along with the coconut, ginger and garlic over low heat for about 5 minutes, and then add about a third of the cashews and the onion, and continue to roast for maybe another 10-15 minutes.  Allow to cool completely, and then grind up in a blender with some water until you have a smooth, fine paste.  This should extract maximum flavour and help to get a thick, emulsified gravy.
6. Then heat oil in a large pot, and fry this spice paste for around 10 minutes, before seasoning with salt, add the chicken, and fry for a few minutes making sure chicken is well coated with spice mixture.
7. Add water, and simmer for about 10 minutes before adding the rest of the cashew nuts, and continue simmering until the chicken is cooked through.
8. I would leave the yoghurt out, but maybe add some lemon juice and grated lemon zest to the rice.

As I mentioned earlier, I'm going to try out these changes next week, so I'll let you know how it works out, but I feel pretty confident it will deliver I better balanced flavour, and a good, thick gravy.

If you would like to get to know Tessa a little better, then do go and visit my friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs and see what they've all cooked up ...

... or check out Falling Cloudberries and many of Tessa's other great titles available from Amazon or Fishpond NZ.

         

I'm also sharing this at Cookbook Sundays, where my friends are delving into their cookbook collections and sharing some of their recipes.  Do stop by to see what they're cooking - you might even feel inspired to link up a recipe from one of your own cookbooks.