Pumpkin Fritters

Pumpkin Fritters 

400g pumpkin, grated

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp dried oregano

½ tsp dried basil

½ tsp salt

1/8 tsp chili powder

1 egg, lightly beaten
100g flour

olive oil, to fry

sour cream, to serve

1)  In a large mixing bowl, mix together pumpkin, garlic, oregano, basil, salt and chili powder. Mix in the egg. Stir in the flour and mix just until combined.

2) In a skillet, heat olive oil. Cook fritters on both sides until nicely golden brown. Serve with some sour cream.

Makes 2 servings

Recipe by collecting memories

Brie Quesadillas

Brie Quesadillas

2 tbsp olive oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped into thin strips
1 onion, chopped into thin strips
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp sugar
pinch salt
100g soft brie cheese, sliced
2 wheat tortillas
tomato sauce, to serve

1) In a saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and bell pepper. Cover and cook until softened and a little bit browned, stirring occasionally.

2) Add balsamic vinegar, sugar, salt and ginger. Stir to combine, cover, and cook until the liquid has been absorbed.

3) Remove cooked mixture from the saucepan into a bowl. Place 1 tortilla in the saucepan. Spread half of the cooked mixture on one half on the tortilla, arrange half of the cheese and cover with another side of tortilla. Press gently. Cover and cook on both sides until the cheese has melted and the sides are golden brown. Repeat with the remaining tortilla.

4) Remove from heat and slice. Serve warm with some tomato sauce.

 

Recipe by collecting memories

Balsamic Mushrooms

Balsamic Mushrooms

Olive oil for cooking

8 extra large or 400g mushrooms, chopped into medium chunks

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped 

100ml balsamic vinegar
100ml light cream
Salt, to taste

Pepper. to taste

1) In a saucepan, heat two tablespoons of olive oil. Add mushrooms and garlic, toss to coat, cover and let cook until mushrooms release their liquid. Uncover and cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated. 

2) Pour in the balsamic vinegar and cook uncovered until it almost evaporates. Slowly pour in the cream and cook a few more minutes. You may want to increase the heat at this time. Season with salt & pepper and turn off the heat when there's still some liquid left in the pan.

Serve warm on toasted bread.

Makes enough for 4 slices of bread.

Recipe by collecting memories

Cauliflower Fried "Rice" with Balsamic Sauce

Cauliflower Fried "Rice" with Balsamic Sauce

1 small head cauliflower

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

2 eggs

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

200g of frozen cubed carrots

200g of frozen peas

1 small head broccoli, chopped into small florets

1 cup frozen green beans, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt, to taste

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp sesame seeds, lightly toasted

Balsamic Sauce (recipe follows)

1) In a pot, bring some water to boil. Add green beans and cook for about 5-10 minutes or until softened. When they finish cooking, remove from the water and drain. Do not turn off the heat. Add frozen peas and carrots to the same water and bring to boil. Cook for about 4-5minutes or until thawed and slightly softened. Remove from water and set aside.

2) Grate cauliflower into rice sized pieces. Set aside.

3) Lightly beat the eggs. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the eggs. Scramble the eggs and set aside.

4) Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.

5) Add bell pepper, garlic and broccoli and cook, covered, for another 10 minutes until a little bit softened. Stir frequently. Add more olive oil if needed.

6) Stir in cauliflower, carrots, green beans and peas. Cover and cook for another few minutes. 

7) Stir in scrambled eggs and sesame seeds. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and balsamic sauce. Serve immediately.

Balsamic Sauce:

120ml/1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

120ml/1/2 cup water

2/3 tsp Ginger

1/2 tsp mustard powder

2 tsp honey

1 tsp Salt

Pinch Pepper

1) In a saucepan, combine all the ingredients and cook on low heat to about 2/3 of its original volume. Let cool a bit before mixing with vegetables.

Recipe by collecting memories

Pumpkin Custard Cake with Brown Butter Crumb Topping

Fall is coming to an end and before I start baking Christmas desserts I want to use up as much pumpkin as I can. You can't imagine how much pumpkin I have! First I wanted to make a simple pumpkin coffee cake but when I started making it I couldn't resist experimenting a little. What I'm the happiest about is that I decided to brown the butter for the crumb topping. Oh my!! It turned out fantastic! I've never tasted a better crumb topping. And luckily there was a generous amount of it. The cake batter was super moist, probably because of the pumpkin custard layer on top. The general outcome was amazing. The whole cake was very moist, creamy and that crumb topping made it perfect. It's not overly sweet what I liked too. Come on! I know you want that crumb topping.

Pumpkin Custard Cake with Brown Butter Crumb Topping

Crumb topping

70g butter, browned
100g light brown sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
115g flour

 

Cake Batter

160g pumpkin puree
250g flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
100g white sugar
100g sour cream
½ tsp ginger
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp oil

Filling 
600g pumpkin puree
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ginger
60g white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten

1) First, make the crumb topping. Melt 70g of butter in a pan over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the butter turns its colour to brown. Be careful not to burn it. In a medium bowl, mix together light brown sugar, salt, flour and cinnamon. Stir in the browned butter and mix with your fingertips to make crumbs. Set aside.

2) Make the cake batter: In a bowl, mix together flour, white sugar, ginger, salt, cinnamon and baking powder. In another bowl, stir together pumpkin puree, eggs, sour cream and oil. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ones and stir to combine. Set aside.

3) For the filling, mix together all the ingredients until combined.

4) Preheat oven to 180C/350F and prepare a 20x20cm silicone baking dish. Spread half of the cake batter mixture. Spread the pumpkin filling on top. Cover with remaining cake batter mixture and sprinkle with crumbs. Bake for approximately one hour. Let cool completely before cutting.

Recipe by collecting memories