Walnut And Basil Pesto With Roasted Tomato

Basil would have to be one of my all time favourite herbs. How can you possibly resist that gorgeous smell? I love it in salads, particularly with fresh tomatoes from the garden and some bocconcini, goat's cheese or feta. Delicious!

Tomato and basil just scream summer to me.

Last week I bought a massive bunch of basil for a salad I was making and had lots left over. Not wanting to waste it, I thought I'd make my second favourite basil dish - pesto. Normally I'd use toasted pinenuts in pesto, but they can get rather pricey.

A few weeks ago I saw a recipe for a basil pesto using walnuts, so thought I'd give this a go instead. In my version, I toasted the walnuts first to give them a bit more depth of flavour and nuttiness and added lots of garlic and lemon juice.

The result was delicious! I'll definitely be making my pesto this way again. Combined with the beautiful sweetness of the roasted tomatoes, this pasta dish was fantastic for an easy mid-week vegetarian meal. Alternatively, you could serve the pesto and roasted tomatoes on toasted sourdough as a bruscetta. A lovely light lunch.

Bright, fresh and tasty. What more could you want?

Basil And Walnut Pesto With Roasted Tomato

70g walnuts
3 cups basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 cup grated parmesan plus extra to serve
juice of 1 lemon
1/3 cup olive oil plus extra for drizzling
salt and pepper to taste
200g tomatoes, quartered
250g pasta

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
Place walnuts on a baking tray and bake for 5-8 minutes, or until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
On another tray, drizzle tomatoes with oil and roast for 20 minutes or until soft. Remove from the oven and set aside.
In a small food processor, combine walnuts, basil, garlic, parmesan and lemon juice. Blitz until a course paste forms. You'll probably need to scrape down the sides to make sure everything is combined.
Add the oil and season to taste and whiz again until the desired consistency. I like mine to still be a little chunky.

Cook the pasta according to packet directions and drain, reserving about 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
Return hot pasta to the saucepan with the pesto and stir to coat. Add some of the cooking water to loosen it a little bit.
Once combined, stir through the tomatoes.
Serve in bowls with extra parmesan and a few chopped basil leaves on top.

Enjoy!

ASG Little Learner Pack

Even though eat quaff laugh is a food and wine blog, having two young children I'm always on the lookout for resources that can help me to be a better parent and allow my kids to learn.

At the recent Melbourne Bloggers BBQ that I went to, I was lucky enough to be asked to review ASG’s Little Learner Pack. 

ASG is focused on supporting children’s education – it’s all they do. They’re typically known for their educational funds, however this pack is an example of the educational resources they provide.

With Little Miss soon to be 6 and Mr almost 4 in tow, I jumped at the chance.

ASG are an Australian and New Zealand based, member owned organisation who provide products, information and resources to allow parents to support their children's education from kinder through to university.

They also help parents to plan for the costs of their children's education, with education benefits and scholarships available.

Being a member owned group, any financial benefits are returned to members, which in the long term helps to offset educational expenses over the years.

To find out more about ASG, visit their website here. ASG’s Little Learner Packs usually retail for $49.95 but contain over $180 worth of value.  They can be purchased directly through the ASG website.

The kids couldn't wait to get home and start looking at the pack.

Included in the pack are:

- The Cat in the Hat DVD (educational edition with 4 episodes)

- a set of five hard-cover story books based on the five foundations of You Can Do It! Education by Professor Michael E. Bernard, with stories on how to get along, confidence, resilience, being organised, and persistence

- Membership to MY ASG, including access to online education and newsletters

- Discounts on health insurance and educational DVDs

- Access to a discount on Parentingideas Club, an online parenting centre

Being school holidays when we received the pack, it was the perfect time to put it to good use. Also, the books were great to prepare Little Miss for going back to school in grade 1 and for the Little Man to start kinder.

The kids both loved the Dr Seuss DVD. Loving his books anyway, this was a real hit. The fact that the stories were educational as well, was great from my perspective. I didn't mind them spending the afternoon watching it, when I knew that they were learning something too. In fact, they loved it so much that it seemed to be on repeat for hours!

The Little Man found the books a bit old for him, but we were still able to discuss the concepts with him in a more little kid friendly way. Little Miss loved them, particularly the one called Lucy's Dream, which was about persistence. She liked the way that the books were rhyming, with big writing and pictures on each page. Learning to read herself, she wanted to try reading some of the books too. 

I have only just activated my membership to ASG, so haven't had the chance to explore them online as yet. Over the next week or so, I'll have more of a look into what I can find on the website.

I think these packs are great for anyone with young children who are just beginning their school and education journey. The DVD and books explore some great concepts and make learning fun, which is always great for the little ones. If they don't know they are learning, it's much easier to get them to do an activity!

I really would recommend the Little Learner Packs to everyone. For $49.95 they are certainly money well spent.



* Even though I was given my copy of the Little Learner pack by ASG, the photos and opinions used in this review are my own.

Lunchbox Treats

Now that school has gone back, I'm on the lookout for treats that I can put in my daughter's lunchbox. Luckily we don't have a 'no nuts' policy at our school, but I do try to avoid putting nuts in things if I can. This slice is perfect if you can't have nuts, but still want something dense and filling.

This recipe for Granola or Muesli bars was in last weeks copy of Epicure in the The Age Newspaper. I don't really like grams of wet and dry ingredients, because I find it too fiddly, but I held my tongue and diligently weighed everything out. Next time I'll take more notice of how much I add and convert it to cup measurements.  I also modified the original recipe a little bit to use up what I had in the cupboard. If you don't like dates, dried apricots, or any other dried fruit would work nicely too.  To make them as a home treat, you could easily add chopped nuts instead of the seeds.

The bars turned out nice and dense, so were great in a lunchbox, where they get tossed around a fair bit. There is nothing worse than a delicate slice or biscuits that ends up as crumbs by the time you get to eat them!

As an after school snack, kids can enjoy with a nice glass of milk and you can sit down and relax with a cup of tea or coffee!

Granola Bars

100g butter, cut into cubes

80g honey

90g brown sugar

80g dried dates, chopped

200g rolled oats

20g poppy seeds

30g sunflower seed and pepita mix

1/4 tsp allspice

A pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 160 degrees.

Line a 20x20cm cake tin with baking paper.

In a saucepan, combine butter, honey and sugar and heat until melted. Simmer gently until a soft caramel forms.

Combine all other ingredients in a bowl.

Add the hot caramel to the dry ingredients and stir to coat evenly.

Scoop the mixture into the tin and press evenly with the back of a spoon.

Bake for 15-20 mins or until golden brown. The slice will still be soft when you remove it from the oven, but will set more as it cools.

Cool in the tin, then cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!

Banana And Peanut Butter Cake

Today was my daughter's first day back at school, so I thought I'd do some baking so that she had a treat to come home to. Such a nice Mum that I am!

When I looked in the fridge, I didn't quite have enough butter for the cake I was going to make. In a stroke of genius, I thought I'd use peanut butter in its place and this delicious banana and peanut butter cake was born! Using brown sugar, instead of white, also gives it a beautiful caramel colour and intensifies the flavour.

The peanut butter icing is absolutely amazing. Mr eat quaff laugh, who doesn't have much of a sweet tooth, claimed it was 'delicious'! If you want a smoother icing, use smooth peanut butter. I only had the crunchy version in the cupboard, but didn't mind having a few bits of nuts in mine.

If you like lots of icing on your cake, or you're likely to eat half of it straight out of the bowl (like I did) then I'd recommend making a double batch. It disappears without even knowing it! To get a bit fancy, you could decorate the top with extra roasted peanuts and some banana chips.

This cake  is yummy! Go on and make it for an after school or work treat :-)

Banana And Peanut Butter Cake

100g butter, softened

50g peanut butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 1/2 cups SR flour, sifted

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

2 Tbs milk

Pre heat oven to 180 degrees.

Grease a cake tin with oil spray. I used a loaf tin, but you could use round or square, if you prefer.

Beat butter, peanut butter and sugar until creamy.

Add eggs, mashed banana and vanilla and beat well.

Fold in the sifted dry ingredients and milk until well combined.

Pour into the tin and smooth the top.

Bake for 35-40 mins or until golden brown and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool for 5 minutes in the tin and then tip onto a cake rack to cool completely.

When cold, ice with peanut butter icing

Peanut Butter Icing

150g cream cheese, softened

2 Tbs peanut butter

3 Tbs icing sugar

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth and creamy.

Enjoy!

Iced Vo-vo Ice Cream

With Australia Day coming up next week, Facebook and the internet is being swamped with pictures of lamingtons, pavlovas, prawn dishes, kangaroo burgers and the like.

It's nice to get in the spirit of the day, so I thought I'd work on a recipe for my variation on a classic Aussie treat. Iced vo-vos are particularly Australian and I know that my husband loves them. Why not come up with an ice cream version, which is probably much better suited to enjoying on a hot day than a biscuit with a cup of tea!

This recipe is really quite easy to make. I made the biscuits and the raspberry sauce myself and then stirred them, pink marshmallows and coconut into bought vanilla icecream. If you wanted to get super fancy, you could make your own ice-cream and marshmallows. I don't have an ice cream machine and didn't have the time to make my own marshmallow. Iced vo-vos should be fun, after all!

If you were really short on time, you could always use a packet of milk arrowroot biscuits and shop bought raspberry sauce or jam. The flavours would still be delicious!

You won't need all of the biscuit base or sauce in the ice cream, so you can experiment with other combinations to come up with your own dessert. Maybe iced vo-vo sandwiches?

Just make sure you leave the vanilla ice cream out of the freezer long enough to soften before you try to stir in the components. If you like more jam or more marshmallow, just add a bit extra. Tip it all back into the original tub and then freeze again for a few hours before serving.

This is the perfect dessert to have on Australia Day, or at any time over summer when you feel like a sweet treat.

Iced Vo-Vo Ice Cream

Biscuit base

60g butter, softened

1/2 cup caster sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup plain flour

3/4 cup SR flour

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line a large baking tray with baking paper.

Beat butter and sugar in a bowl with a mixer until creamy.

Add egg and continue to beat until smooth and fluffy.

Stir through sifted flour until it forms a soft dough.

Place in the fridge for 15 minutes to rest. This is really important on a hot day, otherwise the dough is too soft.

After 15 minutes, roll the dough out onto the baking paper directly into a rectangle about 5mm thick. You might need a sprinkling of flour to stop it sticking.

Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and transfer the biscuit on the baking paper to a wire rack to cool completely.

Raspberry sauce

1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

1 Tbs caster sugar

Place berries and sugar in a saucepan and heat gently, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Bring to a simmer and cook until the berries release their juices and start to break down. You want a thin jammy consistency.

Allow to cool slightly, then push through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Discard the seeds.

Allow the sauce to cool completely. If it seems too thick, add a tiny bit of water to thin.

1 litre vanilla ice cream

1/4 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup pink marshmallows, finely chopped

Allow the ice cream to soften and tip into a large bowl.

Stir through coconut, marshmallows and as much of the crumbled biscuit as you like.

Drizzle over the raspberry sauce and gently stir through so that you create a ripple.

Spoon it back into the original container and return to the freezer for a couple of hours to set.

Enjoy with a little more of the raspberry sauce over the top and a piece of biscuit poking out the side.

Perfect summer indulgence!

Easy Chocolate Brownies

Now that I've had a couple of weeks to get back to normal eating after Christmas, it's time to bring out the chocolate recipes again for a bit of a sweet treat.

Brownies would have to be one of the easiest treats around and this recipe is particularly easy. Just melt the butter and stir in all the other ingredients! To mix it up a bit, you can use whatever add-ins you like. I used desiccated coconut and raisins, but you could be really indulgent and use chocolate chips, nuts or fresh rasperries or blueberries. A combination of everything is pretty good too!

To make this brownie into more of a dessert, serve it warm with a dollop of double cream or ice cream and a drizzle of chocolate or raspberry sauce. Easy, delicious indulgence!

Easy Chocolate Brownies

125g butter, cubed

1/4 cup cocoa 

3/4 cup caster sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup plain flour, sifted

3/4 cup add-ins (coconut, chopped nuts, raisins, sultanas, choc chips, fresh berries)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Grease a rectangular slice tin well. Line if your pan needs it.

Melt butter in a saucepan and then stir through cocoa and sugar until dissolved.

Remove from the heat and add eggs, stirring well between each addition.

Stir through flour and your chosen add-ins.

Spread mixture over the base of the tin and bake for 25-30 mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.

Cool for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a rack to cool.

Serve on it's own or with cream, ice cream, chocolate topping and fresh berries.

Enjoy!

Passage Foods Review

I was lucky enough to be invited to the Kids Business Bloggers BBQ in Melbourne yesterday. It was a great chance to catch up with other bloggers and meet those who I have been reading for ages. I was also able to meet some brands who are interested in promoting their products further through reviews.

One of the brands that I was very excited to try was Passage Foods. This company make Indian and Asian simmer sauces and meal kits using quality ingredients. They also use authentic recipes, so you are assured an easy meal that tastes great. Readily available at Coles, Woolworths and IGA stores around Australia, it's easy to pick up a pack for a simple mid-week dinner.

On tasting at the Bloggers BBQ were the butter chicken and master stock cooked pork belly, served with Kekap Manis. They were both delicious. Mr eat quaff laugh can't wait for me to make the pork belly!

Each blogger was lucky enough to be given a goodie bag containing packets of the Asian Master Stock, Butter Chicken and the Street Kitchen North Indian Butter Chicken. Tonight we trialled the Street Kitchen Butter Chicken.

This meal kit included a marinade for the meat, a spice mix and the simmering sauce. Each component gave a different flavour to the dish, so that the end result was beautiful and rich. Even though there were the three sachets, it still only took 20 minutes to prepare. Just enough time to cook some rice and papadums to go with it!

The instructions on the kit were very easy to follow. All you needed to add was 600g of diced chicken.

First I marinated the chicken in the garlic and ginger paste.

Then I fried the spice mix until fragrant and added the chicken to brown.

Finally I added the sauce and simmered until the chicken was cooked.

A delicious meal prepared in no time! We served ours with a spiced potato and pea side dish, to make it a complete meal. the flavours of the Butter Chicken were amazing and everyone in the family gobbled it down.

The very generous people at Passage Foods have a competition running for my readers at the moment, where you too can win a hamper of goodies, valued up to $100.

Do you fancy cooking up your own range of Indian, Asian and Street Kitchen dishes with a handy Prepara iPrep tablet stand? Of course you do!

Just visit their competition page at www.passagefoods.com/competition to enter. Also visit them on Facebook to check out new products and recipes using their range.

Now that I've tried the butter chicken, I can't wait to get creative with the Master Stock and whip up something delicious!