Super simple root vegetables baked in broth

Cooking vegetables in different ways is important, least of all to ward off taste fatigue - sometimes we eat them raw (eg salad), sometimes steamed (drowned in butter or coconut oil), sometimes stir fried and sometimes roasted. And tonight they were baked in broth- a bit like a casserole or braise, though uncovered. I used to cook vegetables  in this way a lot but haven't for many months. My friend Caitlin yesterday shared with me her kipler potato in chicken broth recipe and I simply added a few more root veggies. Thanks for the reminder and inspiration Caitlin! The vegetables absorb much of the broth making them melt-in-your-mouth delicious. A great way for infants to enjoy their first veggies, with the broth adding much nutrient-density and aiding digestion.

Ingredients:

• Assorted root vegetables cut into 1 inch cubes (eg carrots, potato, pumpkin, sweet potato)

• Chicken broth

• Butter

• Sea salt

• Cracked pepper

• Thyme leaves

Directions:

Place vegetables into an oven proof dish (e.g. large Pyrex container). Add enough stock to half cover the vegetables. Add dollops of butter over the vegetables. Season with salt, pepper and a scattering of thyme leaves. Cook uncovered at 120 degrees for a couple of hours until veggies are soft and cooked through. Cover with alfoil until ready to eat.

I steamed some green veggies (eg broccolli and zucchini) and threw these into the root vegetable dish at the very end before serving.

Serve as a side to a main meal.

For meat-based casserole recipes refer to my earlier blogs here, here and here.

So if you are looking for a different way to enjoy your veggies, try this out and let me know what you think. Kali Orexi!

Asian wild salmon salad with miso dressing

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I was at a loss with what to cook for dinner tonight night so I grabbed a tin of wild smoked salmon from my pantry (I always keep a stash handy) and this is what I came up with:

Ingredients:

• Tinned wild salmon (in brine as opposed to oil which tend to be rancid or toxic)
• Rocket or lettuce
• Snow peas
• Cucumber, cut on the diagonal
• Avocado, cut into chunks
• Red capsicum
• Shallots, thinly sliced
• Sesame seeds (preferably activated to remove phytates found in all seeds)
• Nori seaweed, cut into thin strips with scissors approx 2cm in length
• Cracked pepper

Directions:

Assemble vegetables on plate or bowl. Break up salmon into chunks (removing central bony spine and drained of brine) and add to plate. Drizzle Miso Dressing (refer to recipe below) over salad. Garnish with a scattering of sesame seeds and nori strips. Season with cracked pepper. (Additional salt is not necessary if Miso Dressing is used).

Variations: instead of tinned wild salmon, you could use cooked or raw fresh wild salmon or wild smoked salmon or rare sliced lamb or beef.

Miso Dressing Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon tamari (wheat free soy sauce)
• 2 teaspoons (1/2 tablespoon) miso paste

Directions:

Blend ingredients together with hand held blender until well mixed.

I teamed all this with a cup of home-made fish broth with some butter blended through it to drink  as entree.

Tip: avoid farmed fish and only consume wild fish. Why? Farmed fish are farmed in unnaturally crowded conditions ("hatcheries") which breed illness and disease and are fed a very unnatural diet including soy pellets, fire retardants (can you believe it?!) and (in the case of farmed salmon) colour dyes. Sick fish = sick humans who eat the fish. Check on the tins that you buy that it says "wild" salmon. Tinned wild salmon can be purchased in supermarkets. When in a fish shop simply ask which fish are wild and which are farmed. Here's another tip: when in a fish shop or restaurant be aware that all salmon and ocean trout in Australia is farmed other than the salmon you can buy from The Canadian Way. To place an order with The Canadian Way simply go online or call David directly (and tell him I referred you) and he home delivers. His salmon is also sold at Wholefoods House,  Bondi Wholefoods and GRUB. No- I don't get any commission from David....though maybe I should ;-)

Eggplant parmigiana

Need some inspiration on what to do with an eggplant? Try this simple recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant, sliced in 1/2cm thick round slices

• Tomato passata (puree)

• Gruyere and/or Parmesan cheese, grated

• Unrefined salt

• Pepper

• Dried Grecian herbs like oregano and basil leaf Butter

Directions:

Grease a large oven-proof baking dish with butter.

Lay eggplant slices on bottom of the dish (they may overlap somewhat depending on size of eggplant and dish). Dab a few spoonfuls of butter on top of the eggplant. Season with salt, pepper, dried herbs and pour a generous amount of tomato passata over eggplant to cover it. Top with a generous amount of cheese. Cook uncovered at 160 degrees for approximately 45 minutes.

Makes for a lovely melt-in-your-mouth side dish.

Variations: In addition to eggplant add other vegetables like sliced zucchini.

My daughter's response when she ate this tonight: "This is GOOD!!" Tick, that's all I need.

Do you have a favourite way of eating eggplant? If so,  please share!