Eggplant Chicken Parmigiana

I love Chicken Parmigiana, it's a bit time consuming and messy to put together, but it tastes so good and you can get it all ready to go and then just stick in the oven when you are just about to eat it.

I usually just have chicken, but this time I had some extra eggplant in the fridge, so decided to fry that up as well and stick it on top of the chicken. It was so yummy!

I served it with a roasted pumpkin salad, in which I cubed some butternut pumpkin and tossed it in olive oil and salt and roasted in the oven for about 45 mins at 180 degrees. I did this while I was preparing the parmigiana, so that it was done by the time I put the chicken in the oven. I let the pumpkin cool and then mixed it with some rocket and Caesar salad dressing just before serving.

 

Chicken on bottom, then eggplant and tomato sauce

 

Cross-section of dish

Ready to go in the oven!

Chicken Eggplant Parmigiana - Serves 2

1 Chicken Breast
Flour for Coating
1 Egg
Breadcrumbs
Olive oil for Frying
Eggplant - Optional
1 Clove Garlic
1 small brown onion
Tin of Crushed Tomatoes
Red Wine Vinegar
Fresh Basil
Mozzarella Cheese
Parmesan Cheese

1. First chop the onion and garlic and saute in olive oil until soft

2. Add the tin of tomatoes to the garlic and onion and let this simmer, while stirring occasionally, while you prepare everything else.

3. Cut the chicken breast in half and then place the halves between glad wrap and smash it with a mallet, or rolling pin, or whatever you fancy

4. Place the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper, whisk the egg in a wide shallow bowl, and put the bread crumbs on a different plate

5. Grab the flattened chicken breasts and dip in the flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs. Put them on a plate and place in the fridge while you fry the eggplant

6. Slice the eggplant in 1/2 cm slices, put some oil in a pan and get it nice and hot. Once the oil is hot, fry the eggplant until it is nice and soft. You could do this on a grill pan, but I don't have one of those....yet. Once they are done put them on a plate lined with kitchen towel to absorb the extra oil. Eggplant needs a lot of oil..

7. Once the eggplant is done, you can now fry the chicken. Use the same pan, and you will need to add more oil if your eggplant hasn't soaked it up already. Fry the chicken breasts on each side until they are nice and golden.

8. The tomato sauce should be ready now, splash in about 1/2 tbs red wine vinegar and mix through some fresh basil leaves. Taste and check for seasoning. I sometimes add a bit of sugar to my sauce as well.

9. It's time now for layering the dish. In an oven proof dish put the chicken breasts, then layer the eggplant, then spread the tomato sauce all over it. Then grate or slice your mozzarella on top and shave the Parmesan over that. I don't specify any cheese quantities, as it's up to you what you think is enough.

10. Place in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese are melted and turning brown.

I usually serve this with a salad as I find it is quite filling. Hope you enjoy it!

Firestone Pizza

My sister was going out to dinner one night with her friends and I asked her where she was going, she said Firestone in Dickson, and I was like there is no Firestone in Dickson. I was positive that I had never seen it, but sure enough she was right. I hadn't even noticed it on the many occasions we eat out in Dickson.

So when we felt like Italian one night, we decided to try out the non existent restaurant.

It is in quite an obscure place (hence my inability to see it). You would only see it if you walked past it and not from the other side of the street.

The restaurant is quite narrow and poky and has a massive bar in the main part where we were sitting. The computer where they input all the meals was right next to us too, so we constantly had a waitress standing next to us which was a bit intrusive.

But enough about that and onto the food! We both felt like pasta, but as it's a pizza place we felt obliged to try the pizza. So instead of getting entrees we got a pizza to share.

Tomato, Mozzarella, Basil and Fresh Tomato - $10.90
After receiving this I was very glad that we ordered pastas and weren't just eating pizza. While the topping was very tasty, the base was so dry and crunchy. I don't know if all the pizza bases are like this, but it was terrible. Luckily the start of the meal didn't set the standard for the rest of the meal.


 Pappardelle with flaked Osso Bucco in rich beef and red wine gravy - $19.90

Whenever there is pappardelle on the menu I am sold! This was really good too it tasted like home made pasta. The meat was not as tender as I would have liked, but all the flavours were wonderful. They didn't overload you with pasta either so that you are completely full after eating it.

Roquette, black olives, tomato, goats cheese feta, red onion salad - $13.90

We had to get a salad as well, and although I thought the price quite expensive for a salad, it was really good. We ended up eating the whole salad too, which normally never happens.

 

Spaghetti with poached chicken, preserved lemon, crisp sage and goats cheese - $18.90

Frankie went with the poached chicken pasta which he was very happy with. It was quite tasty, but I wouldn't have swapped it for the pasta I chose.

Vanilla Bean Brulee with Shortbread - $11.90

We decided to share a dessert, as we both can't usually eat a whole dessert to ourselves. The Brulee was so good and the custard was packed full of vanilla bean specks. I think I ate more than my half share as it was so delicious. I would definitely order this again.

Not 100% a great meal, but next time we go there we will steer clear from the Pizza. There are a lot of pasta options and tapas style dishes which I would be interested in trying.

Home Made Granola

I always go through stages where I tend to eat the same breakfast for a while and then I get sick of it, so I move onto something else.

Granola is something I love to eat for breakfast as it's easy to bring along to work and it's very tasty and nutritious!

I have never made my own muesli before and I saw this recipe on Lorraine's site a while ago, from a Nigella Recipe, so thought it must be good if it was going to be endorsed by these two ladies.

The recipe turned out very well, although seeing as I haven't made muesli before, I didn't realise that the edges would burn a bit if you didn't move them around, so make sure you do this! That's alright though, as this recipe makes a large quantity, so if you have to discard a few burnt bits, there will still be heaps left over.

One thing I would change though would be the amount of sultanas in it. There seemed to be a lot, and as there is quite a bit of sweetness in there already, this overpowered it. Next I am going to try the chocolate version, with some berries yum!

 The Group of Ingredients

 Mixing it all together

Spreading it out to be baked in the oven

Ready to eat!

Andy's Fairfield Granola

Makes 2.5 litres

Ingredients

• 450g rolled oats
• 120g sunflower seeds
• 120g white sesame seeds
• 175ml apple sauce (I use apple juice)
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ginger
• 120g brown rice syrup or rice malt syrup or failing that golden syrup (I use golden syrup)
• 4 tablespoons runny honey
• 100g light brown sugar
• 250g whole natural almonds
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 2 tbsp. sunflower oil
• 300grams raisins

1.Mix everything (except the raisins) together very well in a large mixing bowl. I use a couple of curved rigid spatulas; normally I’d be happy to use my hands but here it just leaves you covered with everything.

2.Spread this mixture on two baking tins (the sort that come with ovens and are about the width of a rack) and bake in a gas mark 3/170c oven turning over halfway through the baking and redistributing the granola evenly during the baking process. The object is to get it evenly golden without toasting too much in any one place. This should take anything from about 40 minutes. I use a gas oven, which doesn’t brown as fast as en electric one, so often leave it in up to an hour.

3.Once its baked, allow to cool and mix together with the raisins. Store airtight

Lagoon Restaurant Wollongong Take 2

Last time we went to Wollongong we had such a good and relaxing time. When we had nothing really planned for NYE, except at night, we decided to spend the day in the sun at Wollongong. Of course we had to eat something though, so we chose to revisit the Lagoon to try their a la carte menu.

When we got in there we were given a beautiful table right next to the window, although the window was open and there was a nice breeze, but a bit too breezy as the table cloth kept flapping and blowing and covering the table. Luckily they closed the window so it didn't happen all throughout the meal.

We were so tempted to get the seafood platter again but resisted. Instead we started with a mixture of oysters and some bread.

Wood Fired Sourdough - $6.90

Oh my god this bread was soo good and so big as well. Most places when you order bread it's enough for 2 people, but this could have fed about 6 people. It was beautiful and warm as well. I had to stop myself eating it so i wouldn't ruin my appetite! View from our table

Mixed Oysters - $24.50

At around $2 an oyster, these were really good. We had 4 natural, 4 wasabi and white horseradish and 4 thai chilli and lime. I love oysters so much, I wish I could afford to eat them every day. Saganaki Snapper - $27.90

I decided to go with the Snapper for main. Let me tell you they don't skimp on the sizes here. The mains are huge and very tasty. I could only eat half of mine. It was a bit different from what I expected but it was still delicious with the cheese and tomato (best combination ever). Snapper Fillets - $29.90

I can't remember what Frankie ordered. I think it was the snapper fillets? Whatever it was it was very good and a massive serving. Greek Salad - $11.50

We also ordered a greek salad, which I hardly touched as my main meal was like a greek salad anyway with the cheese, tomatoes and olives. Frankie

Outside View

The Lagoon Restaurant
Stuart Park
North Wollongong
Ph: 4226 1677

Lamb Cutlets with Couscous and Ratatouille

I was watching Poh's kitchen the other day for the first time in ages. I always seem to miss when it's on, so I have only seen a few shows out of the season. You can watch the episodes online at the show's website too, so I need to catch up on the ones that I have missed out on. I am hoping to get her cookbook soon cause I love the way it is presented and want to try a lot of the recipes.

On this episode she had her friend Emmanuel who seems to feature a lot on her program. Poh cooked this delicious pork dish and he cooked a slow cooked lamb dish with a side of couscous and ratatouille. I haven't cooked much with couscous before and I don't know why, cause it's such an easy grain to cook with and you can do so many variations with it. Although in the recipe on the website it doesn't specify the exact amount of water to use and I ended up using too much and had to start again.

The couscous is delicious and so light and pairs very well with the ratatouille and lamb. I didn't cook the slow cooked lamb, but used some lamb cutlets that I got from Aldi (which were sensational) and marinated them in some olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic and rosemary for a few hours. The marinade was delicious and gave the cutlets a nice crust from the caramelisation of the red wine vinegar.

 Couscous Salad - Adapted from Poh's Kitchen Website

200g Couscous
2tbs Olive Oil
1 Green Capsicum - diced
1 Lebanese Cucumber - diced
2 Tomatoes - flesh and seeds removed and diced
2 Shallots (I forgot to add these) - diced
2 Lemons (I think I used only 1 as mine was quite big) - juiced
1 Small bunch of Coriander - chopped

1. Put the couscous in a bowl and add olive oil, salt and pepper, and just enough boiling water to cover it (don't add too much otherwise it will become claggy). Leave for about 10 minutes for the water so soak up.

2. Fluff up the couscous and add all the other ingredients and then season to taste. So easy!

Ratatouille - Adapted from Poh's Kitchen Website

1 Brown Onion
2 Garlic Cloves - sliced finely
1 Red Capsicum
1 Small Eggplant
1 Zucchini
Tin of crushed tomatoes
2 Sprigs of Thyme
1 Bay Leaf
Chopped Parsley
100ml Vegetable Stock

1. Dice all the vegetables in chunks (My favourite way of dicing vegetables!)

2. Add some olive oil in a pot/pan and saute the onion for a minute and then add the garlic

3. Add the capsicum for a few minutes and then add the eggplant and zucchini.

4. Finally add the crushed tomatoes, vegetable stock, thyme, bay leaf, and salt and pepper.

5. Cook on low heat for about 20 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.

Lemon Salmon Pasta

I am very excited as I was reading an article on a news website about how SBS will be bringing a lot more food shows onto their program next year. The Food Safari series will now be focusing on French and one of my favourite shows - Anthony Bourdain No Reservations will be coming to SBS 2. I used to watch it all the time on Foxtel, but I don't have Foxtel anymore so don't get to watch it :( 2011 is going to be a good year for food!

But back to my recipe book of the moment - No time to cook! Comes this easy pasta dish.

Very few ingredients are needed and most of them should be in your pantry if you cook pasta dishes.

I made this the other week and it was so tasty and good that I made it again a few days later... Well I had to use up the dill that I bought.

Salmon is my favourite type of fish to eat (well really the only type of fish I eat, apart from tuna) and I love Dill. Dill is apparently one of the easiest herbs to grow as well. It is also a great companion plant for cucumbers, so I think I will have to plant some in my garden and start pickling some things!

Lemon Salmon Pasta - From Donna Hay's No Time to cook

200g Thin Spaghetti
1/4 cup (60ml) cream
2 Tablespoons of Lemon Juice (which is about 1/2 a lemon)
2 Teaspoons Dijon
1 Tablespoon chopped dill
1 Tablespoon salted capers
175g hot smoked salmon fillet, flaked

1. Cook spaghetti in salted boiling water for 10 - 12 minutes or until al dente

2. Drain and return to the pan.

3. Add cream, lemon juice and dijon and toss to coat

4. Stir through salmon, capers and dill and serve immediately

How easy is that! Thanks Donna!

Organic Plants

Mum came around the other day and brought me a little present. How cool are these. Instead of having a chocolate fundraiser for a school, they were selling grow your own herbs and plants.

With the two herbs, all you do is cut off the top, sew the seeds (that come in a little plastic container) water and then wait for them to grow. The vegetables are done in a similar way, but once the seedlings are about 5 cm tall you are meant to replant them in the garden or a pot.

I have had them going for about a week now and haven't seen any growth, so we will wait and see...

Coriander Plant

Sweet Basil

Organic Lettuce

Organic Capsicums