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Simple Salmon Laksa

It’s been a while since I posted a recipe using one of our favourite foods, salmon. 

Lightly poaching the salmon and vegetables in the spicy coconut broth for a few minutes and then pouring it over some rice noodles is all it takes to get this delicious dish on the table on a cold Tuesday night.

For our younger kids who don’t like spicy food, I serve them noodles, salmon and vegetables and not much broth. 

For ourselves and our eldest, we enjoy it almost like a soup, with forks and spoons, drinking up the liquid at the end. 

Simple Salmon Laksa
Serves 6
Salmon and vegetables poached in a spicy coconut broth, served on top of thin rice noodles.
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Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
10 min
Total Time
20 min
Prep Time
10 min
Cook Time
10 min
Total Time
20 min
Ingredients
  1. 185 gram jar of laksa paste (I used AYAM brand)
  2. 1/2 a lemongrass stalk (approx 5cm), finely chopped
  3. 1/8 purple cabbage, finely shredded
  4. the stalks of a bunch of broccollini, sliced into thin batons
  5. leaves and stems of 1 bunch of bok choy, washed and thinly sliced
  6. 150gm green beans, cut into small pieces
  7. 4 cups fish, vegetable or chicken stock
  8. 400ml can of coconut cream
  9. 400-500gm fresh salmon fillets, skin off, bones removed, cut into small cubes
  10. 200gm pack rice vermicilli noodles
  11. juice of 1 lime
  12. a handful of bean sprouts and fresh coriander to serve
Instructions
  1. Prepare rice noodles according to packet directions.
  2. When noodles are ready, divide amongst serving bowls.
  3. Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan.
  4. Fry the lemongrass stalks and jar of paste for a few minutes until fragrant.
  5. Add the beans, cabbage and broccollini stems and stir till combined.
  6. Add the stock and coconut cream, stir and bring to the boil.
  7. Once boiling, add the salmon and bok choy and turn off the heat.
  8. Leave it for a few minutes, until the salmon is cooked through.
  9. Stir through the lime juice.
  10. Ladle the broth, salmon and vegetables over the noodles in the bowls.
  11. Garnish with bean sprouts and coriander leaves to serve.
Notes
  1. This was quite spicy. To make a milder version, only use 1/2 jar of laksa paste.
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/ emma@cookfasteatslow.com 2 Comments

Taco Soup

One of last years most popular recipes on cook fast eat slow was Taco Salad. You can find the recipe here, Taco Salad

Today I am sharing with you the winter equivalent, Taco Soup. 

Hugging a warm bowl of this on a chilly night is very comforting, and often takes me back to my childhood, where it was a family favourite.

This is my version but be as creative as you like with your toppings. We usually have all the toppings on the table so everyone can ‘dress’ their soup with whatever they like. Our favourite toppings are natural corn chips, guacamole or plain avocado, grated cheese, sour cream and capsicum.

Taco Soup
Serves 6
A beef and bean based soup, topped with corn chips, avocado, sour cream and cheese.
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Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
30 min
Prep Time
5 min
Cook Time
25 min
Total Time
30 min
Ingredients
  1. 500gm beef mince
  2. 2 tablespoons olive oil
  3. 1 spanish (red) onion, peeled and finely diced
  4. 2 heaped teaspoons dried oregano
  5. 2 heaped teaspoons ground cumin
  6. 1 large carrot, peeled and grated
  7. 1 green capsicum, de-seeded and finely diced (some set aside for the topping)
  8. 2 x 400gm cans diced tomatoes
  9. 1 x 400gm can tomato puree
  10. 1 x 750gm can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  11. 3 cups water
  12. To serve, use toppings like natural corn chips, avocado, sour cream, grated cheese and reserved capsicum.
Instructions
  1. Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over a medium heat.
  2. Add onion and cook until soft.
  3. Add beef, breaking up the lumps, and cook till brown.
  4. Add all other ingredients and place the lid on the soup pot to bring the soup to a boil.
  5. Turn the heat down and allow to gently simmer 15 minutes.
  6. Remove the lid and simmer for 5 minutes more.
  7. Ladle the soup into bowls and allow people to do their own toppings.
Notes
  1. The soup base will freeze as it is.
  2. Defrost and reheat and then add toppings.
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/ emma@cookfasteatslow.com 1 Comment

Pot-Roasted Chicken with pumpkin and sage

If I tell you this is probably the most ‘moist and succulent’ chicken I have had in a long time, then I hope you will look past the fact that this dish was very hard to photograph well and as a result, I almost didn’t share it with you all. 

But the family often get the final say, when I ask them “Is this dinner blog worthy?”

This one got a very big YES from the family. 

As a foodie, I can be easily drawn to the fancy dish, that looks spectacular on Instagram or in a magazine, but when it comes to cook fast eat slow, I aim to keep my promise to you by only sharing recipes that are ‘home-cooking’ recipes; the type anyone can make in order to feed your family on an average Tuesday night. 

I thank Skye Gyngell for this recipe that first appeared in Delicious magazine April 2008, when she was Head Chef of the infamous Petersham Nurseries Cafe in London. Apparently this is what she feeds her children at home. If it’s good enough for her, then it’s good enough for me!

Pot-roasted Chicken with pumpkin and sage
Serves 6
A whole chicken cooked in a pot with sage, pumpkin and parsnips, in a garlic tomato sauce.
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Prep Time
25 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr 10 min
Prep Time
25 min
Cook Time
45 min
Total Time
1 hr 10 min
Ingredients
  1. 1 whole chicken, cavity rinsed out with water, drained and excess fat around neck trimmed off.
  2. 1 lemon, halved
  3. a small bunch of fresh sage
  4. 2 fresh bay leaves (dried is fine too)
  5. 2 tablespoons olive oil
  6. 1 spanish (red) onion, peeled and cut into chunky pieces
  7. 5 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
  8. approx 1.2 kg butternut pumpkin, peeled and cut into large chunks
  9. 1 large parsnip, peeled and cut into large chunks
  10. 2 x 440gm cans chopped tomatoes
Instructions
  1. Place the lemon half, 1 bay leaf and half the bunch of sage inside the cavity of the chicken.
  2. Tie the legs together with kitchen string.
  3. Heat a heavy-based large pot or saucepan over medium heat.
  4. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and heat till hot.
  5. Brown the chicken a little on each side, for about 10-15 mins or so all up.
  6. Remove from pan and set aside.
  7. Add the onion into the pan and cook till it's slightly softened, stirring occasionally.
  8. Place the chicken back into the pan, and add the vegetables, remaining sage leaves, bay leaf, and garlic cloves.
  9. Pour over the cans of tomato and give it all a big stir, making sure the vegetables are nestled around the chicken.
  10. Cover with a lid and reduce heat to medium-low so it simmers away gently for about 45 minutes.
  11. Check the chicken is cooked by inserting a skewer into the thigh of the chicken, the juices will run clear if it's cooked.
  12. Pull apart the chicken and place in bowls with vegetables, covering everything with lots of sauce.
  13. Serve with steamed green vegetables.
Notes
  1. The chicken doesn't need to be covered by the liquid. Once the lid is on, the chicken will steam and be nice and tender.
Adapted from Delicious Magazine April 2008
Adapted from Delicious Magazine April 2008
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Celebrating Small, Celebrating Him

Monday.

I should be at the groceries and organising the laundry. Then it’s off to Pilates, before a quick catch up with a friend over coffee, followed by a busy afternoon of 3 boys, and their post-school moods and issues, their homework, and then onto the dinner dilemma, some scuffles over showers and teeth, prayers muttered with only a small amount of patience left, and finally bed.

This is a very normal ordinary day for me.

But my body isn’t working today. It just isn’t showing up to the party, so I’m sitting down instead with all the above plans discarded, mocking me in their incompleteness.

‘Life is Beautiful’ by the Afters is playing on my iPod and outside my windows, which I notice need cleaning, is my hedge of flowering white camellias.

IMG_8479

Looking at them actually makes me want to cry. They are so beautiful and sitting here today means I actually get to see them.

‘Thank you for the camellia’s’ I write in my Gratitude Journal.

I keep it close these days, my gratitude journal, as it is the discipline of looking for things to be thankful for in the ordinary every day that is keeping my heart, mind and perspective where it should be.

IMG_8267Not on what I am not achieving, or on a weary, not-working-as-it-should body. Not on what I don’t have and wish I did. Not on someone else’s reality, that I wish was mine.

No. There is no future in that type of thinking. It only robs me of my joy and smile. It only turns me into a person I don’t want to be.

I’ve kept this journal for a few years now, and today, decide to look back through it, to see what ‘thanks’ I have scrawled in the days and moments that have gone before.

the smell of ripe tomatoes

hanging washing in the sun

my morning coffee

hugs from my boys

blue sky

sleep

showers and moisturiser

medicine for sick kids

my parents

the rain

my boys energy for life

my husbands encouragement

money to pay the bills

my girlfriends

I keep flicking through the pages and it dawns on me that I haven’t written anything of great magnitude or extra-ordinary-ness.

The pages are filled with the small, ordinary every-day things that I fear often go unnoticed when we don’t choose to look for them.

Choosing to see them and take a minute to note them down, turns something I could take for granted into something worth celebrating.

I wish I didn’t need this discipline, I wish it came naturally for me to always see the small and the goodness around me every day and appreciate it, celebrate it.

But my human-ness means I often see the dirty, unfinished, not-complete stuff first. I have a tendency to feel the pain and see my shortcomings and stop there. But it’s not a nice place to sit in for too long.

I want to fight to celebrate something each day, in the midst of an ordinary day of chaos, incompleteness and weakness, there has to be something to give thanks for, something to celebrate.

In ‘How writing can be a spiritual discipline’, Ashley Abramson says;

“When I write, my perspective shifts. The mundane becomes a minefield for inspiration. My daily routine becomes an adventure, an opportunity to look for living hope where others may see none. And when I find that hope, I rejoice in the God who gave it to me. Whether I respond to beauty with a blog post, a song or a prayer, my response is worship because I’m noticing God’s beauty and celebrating it—celebrating Him.” (exceprt from www.relevantmagazine.com/life/how-writing-can-be-spiritual-discipline)

So, despite my mood, my health or circumstance, I want to keep looking for something small each day to celebrate. Not only does it keep my heart in check, but it reminds me to look up to the one who gives me every good thing and to worship Him with my thanks.

One camellia at a time.

IMG_8457

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Caramel Apple Pudding

A perfect Autumn dessert, this ‘self-saucing’ beauty is  a mixture of soft apples, buttery sponge and caramel sauce. 

Made with pantry staples, this dessert will feed up to 8 people, making it a great option when having people over at this time of year. 

Thanks to Delicious Magazine, July 2005, it’s been a family favourite for a long time. 

You’re welcome. 

Caramel Apple Pudding
Serves 8
Caramel sauce and soft apples topped with a buttery sponge cake.
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
55 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
40 min
Total Time
55 min
Ingredients
  1. 5 large apples, peeled, cored and cut into approx 1cm thick slices
  2. 1 2/3 cups plain flour
  3. 2 teaspoons baking powder
  4. 1 cup (200gm) castor sugar
  5. 200ml milk
  6. 150 grams unsalted butter, melted
  7. 2 eggs
  8. 1 cup brown sugar (you could reduce this to 1/2 cup to make it less sweet)
  9. 1/2 cup golden syrup
  10. icing sugar to dust
  11. custard, cream or ice-cream to serve
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
  2. Grease a 2.5 litre (large) baking dish
  3. Place cut apples in the bottom of the dish
  4. Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, milk, butter and eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer and mix till combined, thick and pale.
  5. Spread this mixture over the apples.
  6. Combine sugar, golden syrup and 300ml of water in a small saucepan and over low heat, stir until the sugar is dissolved.
  7. Bring to the boil, and then pour gently over the top of the pudding.
  8. Bake for 30-40 minutes in the oven till golden and puffed on the top.
  9. Serve warm with custard, cream or ice-cream.
Adapted from Delicious Magazine July 2005
Adapted from Delicious Magazine July 2005
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