Inspired by a recipe for citrus cured wagyu beef in Luke Nguyen’s Indochine, I made this amazingly delicious appetizer using lamb hearts.

Citrus-cured lamb hearts

Ingredients

• 2 lamb hearts
• juice from 2  Tahitian limes
• 2 tsp of coconut aminos
• 1 tsp of coconut nectar
• a pinch of salt & freshly ground pepper
• 1 tsp of grated ginger (optional)
• 1 tsp of fried garlic
• a handful of herbs finely chopped (I used saw-tooth coriander, mint, green onion)
• 1 tbs chopped crispy nuts
• a drizzle of coconut vinaigrette

Method

1. Clean and trim the heart and cut into thin slices.
2. Arrange in a single layer in a dish.
3. Mix the lime juice, coconut aminos, salt & pepper, ginger and coconut nectar in a bowl and pour the mixture over the slices of lamb hearts.
4. Cover and set aside to marinate for 1/2 hour.
5. Remove the lamb hearts from the lime mixture and give it a squeeze to remove the excess.
6. Place the lamb hearts in a bowl with the mixed herbs, fried garlic and chopped crispy nuts.
7. Drizzle with the coconut vinaigrette.

For the coconut vinaigrette combine the following ingredients in a jar, screw tight and give it a good shake.

3 tbs coconut vinegar
3 tbs garlic infused EVOO
1 tsp coconut aminos
a pinch of salt
a pinch of chilli flakes
1 tbs lime juice
1 tbs coconut nectar (or a couple drops of stevia)

Related posts:

1. Slow Roasted Lamb with Pomegranate Glaze
2. Sri Lankan Lamb Curry
3. Green Papaya Salad

Homemade Feta Cheese

Ingredients

• 10 litres raw milk
• 1/4 tsp mesophilic culture
• 6 ml liquid rennet
• cheese salt
• whey/brine solution

Method

1. Heat the milk to 31deg C.
2. Add the culture, stirring to combine.
3. Cover and allow the milk to ripen for 1 hour.
4. Add the diluted rennet and gently stir for a few minutes.
5. Cover and allow curd to form  (about 1- 1-1/2 hours).
6. Cut the curd into cubes (about 20 mm) and leave for 2 hours.
7. Drain the whey into a container and set aside.
8. Ladle the curds into the cloth lined frame.
9. Weigh down with a weight for about 1/2 hour.
10. Remove the weight and flip the cheese and leave for 2 hours.
11. Flip the cheese again and leave to drain overnight.
12. Next day cut up the cheese into 15 cm square pieces and sprinkle the cubes with the salt to taste.
13. Place in a bowl or box and allow to age for a few days (2 – 4 days) in the refrigerator, turning it a couple times a day to evenly distribute the salt.
14. Store it in whey or make a whey/brine solution, and place the cheese in the solution and store in the refrigerator.
15. Alternatively, you can marinate the feta in olive oil.

To make whey brine solution:  add 1/4 cup of salt to 1 litre of the reserved whey.

Note:  Without a feta frame:  Pour your curds into a colander lined with cheese cloth.  Tie the corners o the cheesecloth and hang the bag to drain for 4 hours.  Untie the bag and cut curds into cubes and sprinkle with salt to taste.  Continue as per step 12 & 13.

Related posts:

1. Homemade ricotta
2. Home-Cured Bacon
3. Lacto-Fermented Mustard

Steak Tartare

A simple, nutrient dense meal!

Ingredients

• best quality grass fed beef fillet (allow 125 to 150 grams per person)
• egg yolk (1 per person), use only the freshest, best quality eggs, preferably pastured

seasonings

• spanish onions (finally chopped)
• salted capers (rinsed and chopped)
• gherkins (I used my own lacto fermented cucumbers)
• flat leaf parsley (finely chopped)
• chives (finally chopped)
• garlic infused EV olive oil
• Coconut aminos
• piment d’espelette
• salt & black pepper

Method

1. Trim the meat and chop it finely.
2. Add the seasonings (onions, capers, gherkins, parsley, chives, piment d’espelette, olive oil, coconut aminos, salt & pepper) according to your liking.
3. Form into a patty.
4. Place an egg yolk on top.
5. Serve with a side salad and thin slices of toasted sourdough bread.

To make steak tartare you need to use the best quality beef.  Fortunately,  we  have access to good quality, chemical free, grass fed beef directly from the farmer.  Our beef comes from Hawthorne Partnership (a father and son team) whose farm is located in Tannymorel  near the border town of Killarney, Queensland (see flyer below):  

Related posts:

1. Beef, Mushroom & Guinness Stew
2. Salsa Verde
3. Sardines with Kamut Pasta

Ingredients

• 350g ricotta (homemade)
• 50g parmesan (grated)
• 1 egg (separated)
• 1 tbs basil  (sliced thinly)
• lemon zest
• sea salt & pepper

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 C.
• In a bowl place the ricotta, egg yolk, parmesan, lemon zest, basil leaves and stir to combine.
• Add whisked egg white to the mixture  and gently fold until combined.  Season with salt & pepper.
• Spoon the mixture into well greased baking dish and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden.

For a delicious lunch serve it with olives & roasted cherry tomatoes!

Related posts:

1. Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni
2. Sardines with Kamut Pasta
3. Lemony Avocado Sauce

When Chocolate is inevitable – make a good one!

Someone gave me a small box of cherry liqueur chocolates which started me thinking!  Loved the liqueur bit and I had some dried cranberries so here is the recipe -
Easter Chocolate Special

2 heaped tablespoons Creamed Coconut
1 tablespoon good coconut oil
1/2 cup Organic Cocoa
1/2 cup Organic Carob  (it is naturally sweet so no sugar needed)
1/2 cup flaky Coconut
1/2 cup dried Cranberries, chopped a bit smaller
1/2 cup of a chocolate liqueur mixed with a raspberry liqueur  (left over Christmas gifts!)
Dash of pure Vanilla
1 desert spoon home made butter
1/4 to 1/2 cup good thick cream

Soak the chopped Cranberries in the liqueur for as long as possible

As the creamed coconut was solid I put the lot minus the cream into a double boiler and stirred it over hot water till it all melted together

Take it off the heat and stir in the cream.  I think at this stage as much stirring as possible helps with the smoothness of the chocolate.

I set about half into heart shaped moulds.

Set the rest on a piece of baking paper on a flat tray. Freeze then cut into squares.

Store in freezer or fridge depending on how hard you like it.

Have fun.

Happy & Healthy eating(plus chocolate!)

Pam

Following on from Pam’s recipe, I  made a batch at home using mostly carob (recipe after the photos).

Ingredients:

• 100 gm creamed coconut
• 35 gm coconut oil
• 35 gm cultured butter
• 60 gm roasted carob powder
• 20 gm raw cacao powder (for the chocolaty flavour)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• for variations you can add dried fruits, nuts, ……

Method

1. Place the creamed coconut, coconut oil and butter in a double boiler over low heat and stir until melted.
2. Remove from heat and add the sifted carob powder, cacao powder & salt, stirring until well combined.
3. Place in chocolate moulds or baking tray.
4. Refrigerate.

 I put some into chocolate moulds and placed a sour cherry in each mould and to the rest I  added a couple drops of peppermint oil and spread thinly onto a parchment paper to make thin mint.

This recipe is for special occasions when chocolate is inevitable …..

More about carob here.

Related posts:

1. Sourdough Chocolate Cake
2. Coconutty Squares
3. Ghee…licious!

Preparing the mix.

2-day fermentation using the pickl-it system

Dehydrated Granola.  Sprinkle over your  kefir or yogurt for that added crunch.

  Granola Bar

To make the Granola Bar  –   3 cups of granola,  a handful of crispy nuts, sour cherries and coconut flakes, 1/4 cup of raw honey, 1/3 cup of melted coconut oil and 1/3 cup of softened creamed coconut.  Combine all ingredients and mix well.  Pour mixture into tray and refrigerate for 1/2 hour.  Cut into slices and keep refrigerated.

Why do we need to soak and ferment our grains? 

“Traditional cuisines and pre-industrialized peoples from around the world took great care to soak or ferment their grains before consuming them as porridges, breads and casseroles.…”

Read this article by Sally Fallon and watch this video by Sarah Pope on proper preparation of grains & legumes (Weston A Price Foundation).

Related posts:

1. Making lacto fermented drinks with water kefir
2. Lacto-Fermented Mustard
3. Sourdough Rice Crackers

Yummy dessert – Whipped Mascarpone with Blueberries

Sauteed assorted mushrooms and mascarpone

Mascarpone is an Italian cream cheese.   This cheese is normally made by heating the cream to 85 deg C and coagulating it with citric or tartaric acid.  There is another method in which a mesophilic culture is added to warmed cream.  Here I have chosen to make the cultured version using Flora Danica culture which gives it a rich buttery taste.

Ingredients

• 2  litres  of raw cream  (or  1 litre raw milk +1 litre raw cream)
• mesophilic starter culture (1/8 tsp)

Method

1. Heat the cream to 30 C.
2. Add starter culture and stir through.
3. Cover and let it sit at room temperature for 12 hours or more until set.
4. Pour into a colander lined with cheesecloth.
5. Let it drain for about an hour or more depending on the consistency desired.
6. When ready place cheese in a covered container and refrigerate.

Note:  Because it is cultured, it can lasts up to 4 weeks in the refrigerator.

(source:  Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll)

No related posts.

These coconutty squares are absolutely yummy.  It is a great and easy way to incorporate good fats into your diet.

Ingredients

Basic Recipe

• 1 1/4 cup creamed coconut (softened)
• 1/2  cup coconut oil (softened)
• 1/4 cup raw cultured butter (softened)
• a good handful of crispy nuts (nuts which have been soaked and dehydrated)
• a good handful of unsweetened coconut flakes
• a good pinch of sea salt

Optional extras

• a squeeze of lime/lemon juice
• zest of lime/lemon
• 1 or 2 tbs of Lacto Fermented brew (ginger beer, coconut water kefir, …..)

Note:  If you need a bit of sweetener, you can add some chopped dried fruits.  This recipe is very flexible, you can play around with the quantity of the creamed coconut, coconut oil and butter.

Method

1. Place creamed coconut, coconut oil and butter in a mixer and beat until smooth and creamy.
2. Add the salt and give it a good stir.
3. Pour the mixture into a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
4. Sprinkle the nuts and coconut flakes over the top.
5. Place in the refrigerator until set.
6. Cut into squares and store them in a container and keep refrigerated.

Related posts:

1. Sardines with Kamut Pasta
2. Lemony Avocado Sauce
3. Spiced Carrot Soup

Delicious, refreshing Coconut Water Kefir!

Note:  I prefer to use local coconuts from tropical North Queensland (photo bottom right) whenever they are available from our local organic store but on occasions have used imported ones from Thailand (photo bottom left).

Related posts:

1. Making lacto fermented drinks with water kefir
2. Butter is better!
3. Baked Kefir Flatbread

Max has been hankering for gizzards for sometime but I haven’t had much luck finding them until a couple of weeks ago.   Gizzards are tough muscle meat and need to be cooked slowly at low temperature until tender.  Here is the recipe I used to make him a salade de gésiers.

Step 1 – Cooking the gizzards in duck fat (Gizzards Confit)

Method:

Put the gizzards into a casserole and cover with duck fat.  Cook on the lowest possible heat for about 2 hours, until tender.

If not using immediately, you can store in a sterilised jar covered with duck fat and refrigerate.

Step 2 – Preparing the salad

Method:

1. Remove the gizzards from the duck fat.  Slice the gizzards thinly.
2. Heat a little duck fat in a frying pan over a medium heat and toss in the hot fat until brown at the edges.  Season with salt & pepper.
3. Add to your salad and drizzle with a dressing.

(recipe source:  Forgotten skills of cooking by Darina Allen)

Related posts:

1. Pan Fried Duck Breast with Blueberry Sauce
2. Grilled Fish with Carrot, Yacon & Seaweed Salad
3. Pomelo Salad with Pork Cracklings