Oaxacan Pizza......and tractor films

Before I begin Mr PK would like it noted he is putting the washing out while I post on my blog. He will then clean the cat litter tray, and the trap in the shower. Your a marvel darling, noted.
Now onto much more exciting things , a Mexican pizza. From Oaxaca to be precise. That's pronounced Wha-ha-ka. you may well already know this, I didn't the first time I saw it...apparently in Oaxaca these are a night time street snack called Tlayudas, that's clae-yoo-das..........I think I'll stick with pizza.

These are truly fantastic, cheap, quick and delicious. I had two flat bread left over from Burritos the other night, and various bits & bobs in the fridge. With not too much effort they produced a great Saturday night dinner, with a bottle of this new NZ ginger beer

The inspiration for this came from one of my favourite cookbooks, Mexican Food Made Simple by Thomasina Miers. Her version uses chicken, guacamole and rocket. Instead I have used grilled fennel, mushrooms, chopped avocado & grilled prawns. As you will see this is a very flexible dish, go with what you like, and more importantly, have on hand.......

Oaxacan Pizzas ( from Mexican Food Made Simple by Thomasine Miers)

I bag/bunch of normal or baby spinach
Knob of butter/splash of oil
Salt & black pepper
2 flat bread (I use fresh ones from my local Mexican, but any flatbread would be fine)
1 fennel bulb, sliced
Handful of Mushrooms
4 spring onions
1 avocado, peeled, chopped into chunks & splashed with lemon/lime juice
Handful of grated cheese (Mozzarella would be lovely, but anything that melts would be fine)
6 kings prawns (or you could use leftover cooked chicken)
Handful of semi dried tomatoes (in summer I would use fresh chopped tomato)
Handful of chopped coriander & parsley

Wash the spinach & shake off in a colander. Heat a medium frypan and add a the butter or oil. Add your spinach, and let it wilt for a couple of minutes. Take out and put back into the colander to cool off, then grab a handful of squeeze out the liquid (spinach has a lot of water!) . Put into a bowl & season with salt & pepper.

Using a griddle pan or the same frying pan, heat up again over a medium heat, then brush the vegetables roughly with oil, and griddle or fry your fennel, spring onions & mushrooms until charred & tender.

Sprinkle your prawns with salt & pepper, or use this spice mix recipe, I like to have in a jar in the pantry. You could also use a shop brought spice mix of course. Chuck your prawns onto the griddle pan/frying pan and cook for a minute or two until charred and pink. Take out and pop onto a plate.

To assemble your pizza use a medium sized frying pan (you can use the same pan for everything in the recipe, just give it a wipe with paper towel before your cook your flatbread) and pop your flatbread into it.
A sprinkle of water helps the flat bread heat up. When it is browned on the bottom, flip over & sprinkle with half your cheese. After a minute or two the cheese will start to melt, top with half of your spinach, then lay half of your grilled vegetables on top. Sprinkle over the chopped avocado, 3 of your prawns, some semi-dried tomatoes and a sprinkle of herbs.

Allow to heat for a minute of two, then fold one half over onto the other and slide onto a plate. Slice and serve with a ginger beer, chilli beer, beer beer............whatever.

There are lots of variations to this, if you don't have spring onions, some red onion finely sliced and doused in lime juice would be ideal. If you wanted to make this vegetarian simply omit the prawns and use a salty feta sprinkled over just before you fold. Griddled fish or Chorizo would also be fantastic. For an extra kick some chopped chilli sprinkled on just before serving is great too.........

My nephew is making this for his cooking night this week, if he can make it anyone can.......:)

Tractor films? About six years ago Mr PK and I went to see a movie at the film festival, I cant recall the name, but it was a Finnish film about a paraplegic who is travelling to the firm who made the tractors involved in his accident. I wont say it was terrible, ............well actually yes I will say that, what a dog.
The lead character was thoroughly unlikeable, the subtitles were in white, which on a snowy background is near impossible to read, and it went on.............and on.
Obviously there were Finnish people in the audience, they laughed away like drains while we struggled to decipher the subtitles........to make matters even worse the Springboks were playing the All Blacks that night, needless to say Mr PK was not impressed. So whenever we see a dodge film, it's a tractor movie. Luckily we have avoided any at this years festival, instead we have so far enjoyed.........

Submarine
Very funny, 80's Wales never looked so bleak. Cringe in parts, but a clever script, and great casting. Noah Taylor rocking the Jewish carpenter look, yikes........tractor recommends 7.5/10

Taxi Driver
I had not seen this before, so it was a treat to see it on the big screen. Robert De Niro is hotter than ever, the soundtrack is pure 70's funk, and it wasn't nearly as violent as I imagined. Cybil Shepherd, now I get what all the fuss was about, she is luminous in this film. Gritty is such a cliche, I'll get back to you when I have something better.........tractor recommends 7/10

Mysterious of Lisbon
At nearly five hours this would be the longest movie I have ever seen, but I think it is worth the length. The story is captivating, it looks beautiful, and has the time to fill in all the gaps. Just a shame the Civic, while a beautiful theatre, is a bit of a trial for a 6 foot 3 inch husband.....for this it loses a point Tractor recommends 6/10

Jiro Dreams of Sushi
I love documentaries, especially low key ones like this, Jiro has been making sushi for 75 years (the best in Japan according to many), in his 10 seat restaurant in the Ginza subway station, and his passion is captivating. Also an interesting look at father son relationships in Japanese culture. Tractor recommendation 8/10

The Trip
I laughed my head off, witty, funny, the impressions for both leads are beyond clever, see this film! Just a shame I saw the 9.15pm show, again at the Civic, again a bit cramped. Tractor recommends 8.5/10

Still a few more to see this week, plus of course Happy Potter, am I the only person who has not seen it yet??? Any one else been along to the film fest, let me know if you can recommend any more films......?

Tortilla Soup, ole....

Forgive the title, I did at least restrain myself on the ! front.
This is a great supper if you feel like a Mexican hit, but without any heaviness or cheese. It is essentially a tomato based soup with chilli and cumin, topped with tortilla chips, avocado and lots of lovely coriander. Light but packed with flavour, I added chicken, but it would be just as good without. Or with some fresh prawns, or even firm white fish.
The recipe it self is based on ones I found in Mexican Food Made Simple, by Tomasina Miers, and Lighten Up by Jill Depleix, with some tweaking to fit what I actually had in the pantry.

Tortilla Soup

makes three generous portions

Soup
1 red onion
Splash oil
3 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
Squeeze of tomato paste if you have it
1 small tin crushed tomatoes
4 small ripe tomatoes, chopped (or another small can if you don't have any fresh)
Half a chopped fresh red or green chilli, or a large pinch of chilli flakes
2-3tsp sauce from a tin of chipotle chillies (optional but adds wonderful flavour)
1.2 litres chicken or vegetable stock
1 skinless chicken breast if using, finely sliced, or fresh prawns

Put the oil into a medium saucepan, and add the onions. Cook over a medium-low heat until the onions are soft, then add the chopped garlic. Cook for a further two minutes, then stir in the cumin, tomato paste, oregano, tomatoes and chilli . Pour over the stock and stir it all together. Bring to a gentle simmer, and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the chicken if you are using it and cook a further 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. If you are using prawns only cook for 4-5 minutes or they will become tough. Check the seasoning and spoon into bowls. Add plenty of the following toppings to taste

Toppings

Handful corn chips or baked fresh corn tortillas
Fresh red chilli, finely sliced
Avocado, peeled and diced
Squeeze of lime
Slivers of red onion
Lots of fresh coriander

This is such a great supper, filling but not heavy or greasy, even my nephew was satisfied, and he can eat like only a sporty 20 year old can....Who am I kidding, I can eat like a sporty 20 year old too, just seems I have forgotten the sporty bit...I do have it on good authority I was 20 once at least.

The chipotle chillis (actually jalapenos which have been smoked) are spicy and smokey and well worth including. I always find far to many in a can, so I fresh them in little ice cubes, and use them as needed. They defrost perfectly, just don't plop one into your drink by mistake.....

I also freeze fresh corn tortillas, these I defrost as needed, brush lightly with oil and pop into a 170C oven for about 5 minutes to crisp up. This is a great alternative to frying, and unlike a lot of brought corn chips has no weird flavourings.

For more Mexican ideas go here

Refried beans and burrito folding 101...

Ok, let me get the burrito off my chest & I will give the Mexican thing a rest for a little while. But you have to try the burrito. It is just so far away from greasy heavy stodge-o-rama burritos you may have had in the past (unless your Mexican in which case this wont taste like your Mama's but try it anyway......) it would be a tragedy if you didn't try it. Not that I am given to hyperbole or anything..........

The beans do take a couple of hours to cook, but it is a very low maintenance couple of hours, just check the pot and top up with water if needs be, nothing too stressful. And the result is just so much better than canned beans you wont go back. They freeze beautifully, so make a batch & stock up. I warn you, nothing makes refried beans look good, but the taste more than compensates.

Refried Beans (frijoles refritos)-adapted from a Tale of 12 Kitchens by Jake Tilson (GREAT BOOK!)


 I use black turtle beans, they don’t need soaking, which I am never organised enough to remember, and cook in about 1 ½ -2 hours. The beans are also delish just cooked and thickened, without refrying, topped with sour cream and some grated cheese.
This makes enough for 6 burritos

1 cup dried black turtle beans
4 cloves of garlic
½ tsp oregano
½-1 dried chipotle chilli (or use a canned chipotle in adobe sauce)
1 onion finely chopped
1 tbsp oil (in Mexico they would use lard!)
2 tomatoes chopped
Salt

In a large pot simmer the beans, garlic, oregano, half the onion, and the chipotle chilli in plenty of water (I used about 4 cups) for 30 minutes.

Add the oil, and continue cooking for about another hour, until the beans are soft. Top up with hot water when they are getting low. Add salt once the beans are soft (not before, or the skins toughen)
In a small pan fry the remaining half an onion with the chopped tomato, until the onion is soft. Add a ladle of the beans and some liquid to the frying pan, then mash using a potato masher. Add this mix back into the pot of beans and stir it in, the bean mixture will thicken up

At this point you can serve the beans with sour cream, salsa and cheese, or remove the chilli, add a splash of oil to a larger frying pan and tip all the beans into it. Add chilli flakes if you want it hotter. Mash with your potato masher, and cook gently until all the liquid has evaporated and you have a thick bean mix.

Use in burritos, tostada or serve with rice and salsa.

Burrito with corn and courgette

A few years ago I started adding corn fried up with chilli and spring onions to my tacos. Then I came across a recipe in Thomasina Miers fantastic Mexican Food cookbook, which adds courgette to the mix. This is really lovely and fresh, and the refried beans and feta cheese add substance

For 6 burritos

1 Tbsp oil
1 can of whole kernel corn, drained (or fresh cut from the cob in season)
2 courgettes, diced into 1 cm cubes (or thereabouts!)
1 fresh red chilli
3 spring onions
Salt & fresh ground black pepper
Handful of chopped mint
Handful of chopped coriander
Squeeze of lime juice

Refried beans
Chopped tomato
Feta cheese
Avocado (optional)
Fresh flour tortillas of flatbreads
Sour cream to serve

Heat the oil over medium heat in a fry pan and add the corn, courgette, chilli and spring onions, with salt and pepper to taste. Fry for 5-10 mins until the corn is starting to colour, and the courgette is cooked. Take off the heat and stir in the mint and coriander, along with the lime juice. Taste and adjust the seasoning to suit , I like plenty of lime and chilli.

To assemble the burrito, take your tortilla, and spread a couple of tablespoons of the bean mix in the middle. Top with the corn mixture, chopped tomato, a crumble of feta cheese and chopped avocado if you like it cooked (I don’t!)

Fold the two edges together, then bring the bottom flap up to form a pocket. Fold forward to encase your filling completely.

Place in a dry non stick pan over medium heat, and cook each side until golden brown. You can also do this in a sandwich/Panini grill, which makes these a great lunch option for work. You will make everyone in the lunch room very envious, and the food police will leave you alone as they don't really smell very strongly

Take off the heat, slice in half diagonally and serve with sour cream, and salsa and guacamole if you like.

You can also add chopped cooked chicken, beef, pork or prawns to this, if you want more protein, but the beans do make it quite substantial.

The Iroquois call corn, beans and squash the Three Sisters, believing they only grow really well when planted together. The beans, which need support, grow up the corn, in turn stabilising it, and fix nitrogen in the soil for the following year’s crop. The squash provides mulch coverage, retaining moisture in the soil, and also spiny protection for the corn and beans. When eaten together the corn provides carbs, while the amino acids in the beans, which corn lacks, form protein, which when combined with the squash create a balanced diet without the need for meat. This is my attempt, peas instead of beans, and no squash, as my half barrel isn't big enough......

What amazes me is how they figured that out, thousands of years before chemistry sets and NZ Gardener? Is there anything more fascinating than food, I think not.......

Plum Kitchen gets lean(ish).......

There is only one thing worse than listening to someone tell you about their diet (sorry "healthy eating plan"...) and that's listening to a description of their latest dream. On reflection the two probably have a lot in common. Often neither have any relationship with reality, but are none the less related with zealous enthusiasm, usually oblivious to glazed expressions, stifled yawns, or outright scepticism.
So in the spirit of diet bores everywhere, secure in the knowledge I can neither hear your yawns nor see your eyes clouding over, I will quietly stage whisper.............12 week challenge. No, I couldn't hear that groan either thanks.
Winter has taken its toll (how many winters I wont divulge, suffice to say my all over duvet is rather thicker than it should be, and my fav trousers no longer do up, not if I simultaneously want like to breath anyway...)  I am concerned come Spring I will either have to seriously embrace the kaftan or never take my PJ's off. Sorry, lounge wear. Neither of these options appeal, so with visions of skinny jeans and floaty tops I am committed to a loss of 12kg. Its a nice round figure to achieve a slightly less round figure, one which will slap me squarely in the size 12-14 category. Yes Mrs Average, I hear your name and it sounds good.

So how does a confirmed glutton, exercise dodger and all round lard lover achieve this? Firstly I have signed up my best pal and one of my sisters. Misery loves company, and we have also introduced an element of competition, 5 kg must be lost by Sept 13 or a pair of shoes is forfeited. There is no way I am losing my shoes! This is the pair I have selected Leopard-Pumps

Next, I am introducing some exercise, nothing silly (I mean, if I actually liked exercise I probably wouldn't be in this predicament would I?) , just walking 4 times a week, sit ups (that's Pru in the picture doing her sit ups with me....) and arm exercises with some weights I found in the packing...........goodbye bingo wings, hello Michelle Obama arms. OK, Michelle arms may be a bit much, but a little less wobble would be good.

Then of course there is the food. And before you say "hey chubby, didn't you just post about Mac n Cheese? And LARDY cake"? yes I know. I know. I know.
Its my long standing love affair with cream, cheese, bacon, butter, fat in general and lets not forget potatoes..........I should have been born about 100 years ago, I would no doubt have been very working class, and a day heaving huge loads of washing about, scrubbing floors, lighting fires and chasing after multiple children would at least have meant I might have worked off my consumption. The irony being of course I probably would not have had anything like that much to eat. I am a classic example of far to much food, choice and time to sit on my backside.
So instead of looking on this as an exercise in deprivation I am trying to see it as a challenge (sorry, I know how hideous that sounds), cooking the best tasting dishes I can, while keeping a reasonable though not ridiculous eye on fat content. Weirdly, not only is it working (1kg down this week) but I am rather enjoying it. Like many things a blanket approach to weight loss is a bit counter productive, my friend is using the Weight Watchers point system, and having great results. I cant even think about pointing everything I eat, but having three sensible (yet delicious!) meals a day, plus a bit of fruit and maybe a couple of crackers at morning tea seems to work for me. A glass of wine with dinner is a lovely treat for me, for her it is a sweet biscuit or bit of chocolate (I have no sweet tooth so can easily give the chocolate a miss, still struggling with cheese...)
So anyway, we shall see how it goes, but here are a few of the yummy things I have been making. I cant vouch for any calorie or nutritional content, but they tasted good.

Supper the other night was steaks, marinated in loads of black pepper, a smidge of oil, salt and a squeeze of lemon. I cooked it on my griddle pan, then topped with a lovely zingy salsa, tasty but simple, using herbs I managed to find alive in the garden.

Handful of coriander
Handful of mint
Handful of parsley
One garlic clove, chopped
One red chili, chopped
Two Spring Onions, chopped
A small splash of olive oil
Seasoning

It was delish, served with potato wedges made with agria potatoes sprinkled with paprika, pepper, chili powder and salt, then baked and topped with low-fat sour cream (which tastes a lot like full fat sour cream), and some frozen corn. Like peas, corn, while being a shadow of the fresh version, is still handy to have, for days when I cant face another root vege, and the rain is pouring, making a salad feel just odd.

Another fav was lean pork steaks (no crackle, alas) briefly marinated in lemon thyme and lemon juice, grilled and served with a very simple salad made of steamed salad potatoes, crunchy Braeburn apple and celery and spring onions straight from the garden, bound with a tiny bit of mayo I loosened with extra lime juice, and a green salad with sweet little cherry tomatoes. Ok, not the most exciting dinners, but I am easing into it...

Tonight I am making a roasted vege salad sprinkled with feta cheese, which will be perfect for lunch tomorrow also. It is inspired by  Sophie Dahl's book, which I really rather like. Simple recipes, lovely styling, and plenty of chat, which I for one like in a cookbook. Her TV show started last week on Food TV, it was slated quite badly in the UK, but I thought she was rather lovely, and that kitchen, to die for!

Planning on making this coconut-beef-noodles from over at Pod & Three Peas this week, I have never used lite coconut milk, but I love curry, and cant possible contemplate giving it up for twelve weeks. I will give the fried noodles a miss, although they look tempting, but egg noodles will be fine. Actually I lost half a stone when I spent a month in India, not Delhi belly, just lovely fresh vege at every meal, and not to many snacks, go figure?

Book update, Brewed, Crude & Tattooed from my last post was actually quite good. Light but funny, I enjoyed the heroine Maggy and the description of a snow bound mall with a killer at large....very excited waiting for my next Amazon purchase to arrive, the delightful Thomasina Miers, UK Masterchef winner back in 2005, and owner of several Mexican restaurants in London has written a Mexican cookbook, cant wait to get cooking. Mexican food is much lighter than you would imagine, I think  alot of what is served here as Mexican is in fact Tex Mex, heavy on the cheese and meat. Mexican cooking is lighter and more exciting that that, watch this space for a bit of Mexico here in my kitchen.
Off for dinner, the fabulous Wallander series two starts tonight on UKTV, this show is really worth watching if you get the chance , Kenneth Branagh is the best. My Mum has read these books, and commented how amazingly similar to the character in the books he is, really bringing him to life. Hopefully I will get the remote back, the Premiership started at the weekend, it isn't enough to watch the games, one must watch all the highlight/preview/review shows also...and you thought diets were tedious......