Martabak Telur Jamur (Translation: Mushroom and Egg Square Spring Roll?)

This is another favourite of mine. Traditionally made with minced beef, I substituted beef with mushroom and the taste work really well.

(Serves 4 – or 2 if you’re really hungry J)

What you need:

2 large mushrooms, diced into small cubes

1 onion, finely diced

a few spring onion

spring roll sheet

2 Eggs

Oil

What to do:

1. Heat a bit of oil in pan and sauté onion until translucent and fragrant. Remove from heat.
2. Combine diced mushroom, spring onion, 2 eggs and onion.
3. Heat oil for frying. (I don’t usually put too much oil, just enough to fry one side)
4. Layout the spring roll sheet (I usually use 2 layers for each), place the egg mixture in the middle of the sheet and fold it into squares.
5. Fry them on one side until golden brown and then flip to fry the other side.
6. Place on absorbing kitchen paper before serving.
7. Cut into little squares and serve.

Slow Cook Weekend – Vegetarian Lasagne

I’m crazy about Lasagne! 

Not the meaty one, well, I like that one too, but nothing beats vegetarian lasagne when cooked correctly.

What do you need?

1 large eggplant, sliced into rounds, 1cm thickness.

1 large sweet potato, sliced into rounds, 1cm thickness.

1 red onion, sliced thickly

Bunch of mushrooms, sliced.

1 red capsicum, finely diced

Handful of fresh basil, chopped

5 tbsp Tomato paste

3 tbsp tomato sauce

50g butter

2 garlic cloves, crushed

¼ cup plain flour

3 cups milk

1 cup grated cheese, the melting one for pizza.

1 box of lasagne sheet

What do you have to do?

1. Bake the vegetable, heat the oven to 200C, lined eggplant, sweet potato and onion. Bake until their tender and golden brown.
2. Tomato mixture: combine red capsicum, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and basil. Mix until combined, add a little bit of olive oil if it’s too dry.
3. The béchamel sauce: melt butter in saucepan on medium low heat. Add garlic and flour and stir like crazy, don’t let that flour clump. That shouldn’t take long to mix. Remove from heat, stir in milk little by little at the beginning and KEEP stirring! Take your time and add milk bit by bit. Once it’s thicken you can add the rest of the milk. Put this back on heat and keep stirring until it thickens a little bit more. Remove from heat. Lastly, add cheese, stir until combined.
4. Layer your lasagne: first layer, lasagne sheet, vegetables and mushroom, tomato mixture, béchamel sauce. Keep layering, I usually make 3 – 4 layers and then top with the last lasagne sheet and sprinkle with cheese at the top.
5. Cover with foil bake in oven 160C for half an hour. Open the foil and bake another 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
6. Wait for 10 minutes before serving to allow the lasagne to set.

Fuss Free Weeknight Dinner – Eggplant Tomato Fettuccini

This meal is a representation of the saying ‘Less is more’. Simple but very yummy.

As usual, I give up meat this Lent, so, my home cooking journey this 40 days will be meat free.

(Serves 6)

What you need..

Onion, finely diced

Garlic, crushed

1 large eggplant, cut into bite size

2 cans of diced tomato

Fettuccini

Parmesan (optional)

Parsley

Olive oil for cooking

Salt, pepper, sugar.

What you have to do...

1. Prepare all ingredients, cut, crush, diced, etc.
2. Prepare boiling water with added salt. Add fettuccini.
3. Heat olive oil, add garlic and onion.
4. Once they smell really good, add eggplant.
5. Stir a little bit until eggplant is slightly soft and then add in the diced tomato and parsley.
6. Cook until eggplant is ready, season to taste.
7. At this point, the fettuccini would be al dente. Add the fettuccini to the eggplant tomato sauce.
8.  Stir to combine and serve with (optional) grated parmesan cheese.

We had it without the parmesan cheese and it was great.

Eggplant is an excellent ingredient for this because it absorbs all the flavour of the garlic onion and tomato.

Who says healthy eating is no fun? J