Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Peach and Blueberry Cobbler

We had some peaches that had to be used so I asked some friends what I could make with 5+ peaches. Someone sent me this Peach Cobbler Recipe. I thought it had a lot of sugar, but I decided to try it anyway.
Putting it together was pretty easy - no stirring :) I also added some blueberries, probably about 1/2 cup or so, since I didn't think I had quite enough peaches (I removed the skins and pits).
It turned out pretty good. It was sweet enough and all that sugar made the dough/cobbler part nice and crispy. The cinnamon and nutmeg add good flavors. I might add some almond extract to the cobbler part next time, but I would definitely make this again, unless I find an equally tasty replacement that uses less butter and sugar.

Monday, July 27, 2015

Ratatouille - roasted

I made this Ratatouille last night and it turned out great! It was a bit sweet from caramelizing. I played a bit with the proportions in terms of what I had on hand - I didn't use mushrooms. I peeled the eggplant (Japanese) and salted it to let it sweat for about 20 min, after which I rinsed and squeezed out as much liquid as I could. I didn't read the instruction that the basil was supposed to be added after roasting, but I think having it in during roasting added flavor.
I served it with some penne and having some Parmesan cheese was delicious. I will definitely make this again!

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Chakalaka

We first tried Chakalaka at a bed and breakfast outside of Cape Town, South Africa. Our host made it for breakfast and served it with flat bread (similar to injera) and scrambled eggs. I've tried to make Chakalaka before, but thought it was a flop flavor-wise.
I used the recipe here as a guide. I put my modified ingredient list below:
3 tbsp oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
~1 tsp ground ginger
2 tbsp  curry powder (maharaja curry powder from India)
1 green pepper, finely chopped
1 red pepper, finely chopped
5 large carrots, (unpeeled but scrubbed and topped and tailed) grated
2 tbsp tomato purée
400g can chopped  tomatoes
2 winter savory, leaves only
400g can baked beans
Salt and pepper to taste

I think I added some water so it wasn't too thick. We had this for dinner with bread/toast.
There was quite a bit, so I would probably do a half recipe in the future.
Also, I chopped the onions and peppers but used the food processor for the carrots. I think I'll throw everything in the food processor for chopping next time. Smaller pieces are better for this dish for me.

This time, it must have been the spices, but I thought it turned out great! I'm going to have a hard time finding the right curry powder again, but I'll keep trying!