After being away from home on vacation for weeks, a favorite thing I love to do on return is to bake. It’s been awhile since the tall muffin tins from Ikea were used and already had stocked up on plenty of the custom baking wrappers for this baking tin… just in case I couldn’t find them again. Quick to make, these Lemon Yogurt Muffins with Poppy Seeds and Dried Cranberries are not overly sweet, especially if you omit the lemon glaze. When eating you will notice a subtle crunch with each bite as the poppy seeds give these muffins an interesting texture. Sometimes I don’t always find poppy seeds in the supermarkets here, so I tend to bring them back when I travel. Continue reading “Lemon Yogurt Muffins with Poppy Seeds and Dried Cranberries”
Category: recipes
Quinoa Salad with Grilled Peaches and Chicken
When you find peaches that actually smell and taste like peaches, it’s a good time to put them to good use in the kitchen. Already a fan of white Doughnut Peaches, decided to use these yellow peaches in this delicious Quinoa Salad with Grilled Peaches and Chicken. I am sure by now you know how to pronounce quinoa. When I first came across quinoa I mispronounced the word and watching a cooking program highlighting quinoa set me straight, “keen-wah” sounded so much more edible! Hailed as a superfood and the “gold of the Incas”, quinoa is high in protein and a good source of minerals and fiber.
You can use the red or white varieties of quinoa with this recipe but I love the contrasting colors of the black quinoa, grilled yellow-orange peaches, white creamy feta cheese and green rocket leaves. Black and red quinoa have a bit more a bite, with a crunchier texture than fluffy white quinoa. Even if your packet of quinoa states that it has been pre-washed, it’s a good idea to give it a good rinse anyway, as some of the seeds natural coating of saponins (which are bitter-tasting) may remain. Do use a fine meshed strainer when rinsing, otherwise you will end up washing those tiny quinoa seeds down the drain of your kitchen sink. Love the tiny squiggly tails of the cooked quinoa seeds, which you can see in the front bowl above.
If you wish to cut corners, buy a ready roasted chicken and simple slice it instead of grilling the chicken fillets. There are many other ways of adding this superfood to your recipes, like these Roasted Shrimp Quinoa Spring Rolls. In fact these Healthy Shrimp and Kiwi Rolls that I made perviously would also be delicious with a few tablespoons of cooked quinoa added to the filling. I have not made patties out of quinoa yet, but might be inspired to make them after seeing these tasty looking Garlic and Thyme Quinoa Patties. A tasty and colorful salad to brighten up your August and perfect for serving at lunch or a light evening meal, or when dining “al fresco”.
Quinoa Salad with Grilled Peaches and Chicken
(serves 4)
Ingredients:
- 225g of quinoa, black or red
- 500ml of cold water
- 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
- 4 chicken fillets (boneless and skinless) (flatten each fillet to a 1/4 inch thickness)
- 2 teaspoons of olive oil
- 4 peaches, halved, stone removed and each half cut into 4 pieces
- 2 teaspoons of honey
- 4 handfuls of rocket leaves
- 1 large spring onion finely chopped (green and white part)
- 110g of creamy feta cheese, cut into small cubes or you could use a soft goats cheese
For the dressing
- 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
- juice of half a lemon
- 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar
- 1 small garlic clove, peeled and crushed
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, for seasoning
How to make: Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer under cold running water. Add the quinoa, water and sea salt to a medium saucepan and bring the contents of the pan to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover and cook the quinoa for 15 minutes until tender and all the water is absorbed. Place the cooked quinoa into a bowl, fluff up with a fork and leave to cool.
Heat a ridged grill-pan to high. Brush the chicken fillets with olive oil and season with some sea salt. Heat a ridged grill-pan to medium high and lightly brush the grill pan with some olive oil. Grill the chicken fillets for about 3 to 4 minutes each side (depending on thickness) or until done. Remove to a plate and cool.
Gently toss the peach slices and honey together. Heat a ridged grill pan to medium and lightly brush with olive oil. Grill peaches for about 2 minutes on each side or until grill marks are visible and the peaches have softened a little, but not mushy. Remove to a plate and cool.
To make the salad dressing: Add the mustard, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar and garlic into a small bowl. Whisk the ingredients together, then gradually whisk in the olive oil. Season the dressing with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.
To assemble: Toss the quinoa, spring onion and 2 tablespoons of the dressing together, season to taste with a little more sea salt if needed. Scatter the quinoa salad over the base of a serving plate. Cut the chicken fillets into slices and place on top of the quinoa. Place the grilled peaches in between the chicken slices and dot the feta cheese cubes over the chicken and peaches. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the salad and serve.
Orange and Rose Petal Madeleines
Jutting out among a stack of baking tins and probably bringing to my attention… that I haven’t baked any madeleines recently and my mini madeleine tin was in need of some baking love. The shelled shaped baking tin creates delicate indentations on the bottom of these feather-light French tea cakes and gives them their distinctive shape. When baked, madeleine’s are slightly crisp on the outside and soft on the inside and are best enjoyed on the day of baking. Once your store them in a container they lose their crispness, but are still perfectly delicious.
Love to flavor them with orange zest and orange blossom and when fresh out of the oven and cooled, dust them over with some rose petal sugar. Some madeleine recipes call for browning the butter, others use ground almonds and other flavorings, some recipes have no baking powder, others have double action baking powder and then there’s talk of a “hump”. What about the cake batter, is it better to use it straight away or leave it in the fridge for 1, 2, 3, or even 12 hours or maybe even longer? I usually leave the batter in the fridge for about an hour to an hour and a half, for the batter to thicken. My madeleines are slightly rounded on top but don’t have the big “hump”.
You might want to have a look at David’s Leibovitz take on the “hump” and he also shares a recipe for Lemon Glazed Madeleines. I say… enjoy baking them and try not to take the “hump” in the process. When filling the madeleine tin, it’s easier to scoop the batter using an appropriate size measuring spoon and with the help of a little tea-spoon, scrape the batter from the measuring spoon into the madeleine tin.
Perfect sweet morsels of sponge-like cake to enjoy with your next cup of tea or Arabic Coffee or baked for your next family gathering. Madeleines are also a perfect accompaniment to serve with individual creamy desserts like Crème Brûlée, Lemon Posset or a Mixed Berry Mousse.
Orange and Rose Petal Madeleines
(makes about 48 to 54 mini madeleines)
Ingredients:
- 75g un-salted butter
- 75g castor sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon of grated orange zest
- 1 teaspoons of orange blossom water
- 75g plain or all-purpose flour
- 1/2 a teaspoon baking powder
- extra 15g butter (for greasing the madeleine cake tin)
For dried rose petal sugar
- 1 heaped tablespoon of dried rose petals (or remove the petals from about 6 dried rose buds)
- 1 tablespoon of castor sugar
You will need: A 24-hole mini madeleine tin. Unless you have a second tin you will need to wash and grease the baking tin between batches. You also might prefer baking the second batch the next day, as the batter stores successfully in the fridge.
How to make: In a small saucepan on low heat, melt the butter. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, add the castor sugar, eggs, orange zest and orange blossom water into a mixing bowl. With an electric beater, whisk the ingredients together until the mixture is lighter in color, thick and creamy.
Sift the flour and baking powder together into a small bowl, then sift again over the egg mixture and gently pour the melted butter down the inside of the bowl. Quickly but gently fold ingredients together using a large spatula. Make sure no melted butter remains at the bottom of the bowl and that the flour and butter are fully incorporated. Once mixed lay a piece of cling film over the surface of the cake batter and leave in the fridge for one hour to one and a half hours.
Melt the extra butter and using a pastry brush, generously grease the madeleine tin, making sure to grease every crevice, leave the baking tin in the freezer until needed.
To make the rose petal sugar, whizz the dried rose petals and sugar in a spice grinder until powdery or you can grind the ingredients using a pestle and mortar.
About 20 minutes before you are ready to bake your madeleines, pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/180ºC Fan/Gas 6.
Remove the cake batter from the fridge and the madeleine tin from the freezer. Using a half teaspoon measuring spoon, drop rounded spoons of the batter into the madeleine tin, use a small teaspoon to help scrape out the batter. The mixture will spread with the heat of the oven so no need to level batter. Bake the madeleines for about 6 to 7 minutes or until the tops feel firm to touch and golden. Remove from the oven and leave for about a minute, then tip them out from the baking tin on to a wire cooling rack. Dust with the rose petal sugar before serving. Best eaten fresh, store madeleines in an airtight container for up to two days.
To those around the world that celebrate Eid Al Fitr (end of Ramadan), I would like to take this opportunity and wish family, friends, subscribers and readers an Eid Mubarak. 🙂
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