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recipe; spaghetti soup
Okay, this isn’t technically a soup. The sauce of the spaghetti is relatively diluted, but at the end of the day, this is pasta. The first time I was introduced to this dish, however, my cousins called it ‘spaghetti soup’, and the name stuck. This is probably one of my favourite ways to eat spaghetti. I am more of a fusilli type of girl, but for the days when I want spaghetti? This is my go-to. And it’s packed with veggies, and is easy to make! What more could a girl want? Ingredients 1/2 medium white onion, chopped 2 carrots, chopped 1 tin mushrooms, chopped 1 tin tomato paste dried…
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recipe; marinara sauce
Despite how many times I make this, – and I make this A LOT – I just realised I barely have any photos of the sauce? It’s weird, considering how much I enjoy taking food photos for Instagram. This marinara sauce, you guys. My mother-in-law found the recipe, and then over the last year or so, we tweaked it and adapted it, and then snuck in some veggies until it is damn near perfection. The whole family adores it, we use it as is on top of pasta, we’ve used it as a dip, we’ve used it in baked cheesy ziti. It is super versatile and surprisingly easy to make.…
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recipe; tom yum noodles
It has been a very long time since I made this, but these noodles are easy to make and so yummy to eat! They were a lifesaver when my husband and I were studying in Auckland. I haven’t made it since we left New Zealand, though… I should definitely make them again soon, but maybe two batches. One with less chili (for my daughter and mother-in-law) and one with more! Ingredients 1 packet tom yum paste 800ml water 3 bunches noodles 4 mushrooms, sliced 1 chili, chopped 2/3 packet spinach 1 packet puff tofu, halved lemon juice, to taste Method Boil the tom yum paste in water. Add the…
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recipe; chickpea shakshuka
Have you ever come across a cusine where the flavour profiles just work for you? For me, there are a few. A recent discovery is that Mediterranean food and I just mesh really well. Unfortunately, my husband is not as fond of this as I am. But I’m working on it. I found this recipe a number of months ago and finally gave it try, and I have not looked back since. It is easy to put together, you can adjust it to taste (like I did), and the leftovers taste amazing when reheated up. Crisp up some tortillas to dip into it, and you are set! Ingredients 2 tbsp…
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recipe; mushroom fried rice
I never thought I would enjoy cooking as much as I do now. Back when I first started, it was almost a chore. Yes, there was some satisfaction on a job well done when my family enjoyed my food, but that was it. Now, though? Now I understand flavour profiles a little better. I understand what our palates are like. I understand what works well together, at least to an extent. Now I actively look forward to cooking and adapting recipes to suit our tastes. This fried rice wasn’t an adaptation though. It was me realising that I needed lunch, there were a few vegetables at home that needed to…
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recipe; tofu krapao
I have wanted to make krapao for YEARS. It is my absolute favourite Thai dish, and I could eat it almost every day and not get sick of it. But making a good krapao, getting it just right? I used to think if my mother couldn’t do it, I couldn’t either, right? Wrong! (Not that my mother’s krapao is bad or anything, it’s just not to my taste. Sorry, Mama!) Krapao, or bai krapao, for the confused, is a Thai basil stir-fry. In this case, it is a Thai basil stir-fry with tofu and veggies. Which veggies? Whichever you have on hand! I got this recipe almost three years ago…
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recipe; paneer & black bean “meat”balls
What do you do when you want a specific thing but can’t find a recipe for it anywhere? Why, you make up your own by mashing up a few others! The husband didn’t want TheFitFoodieMama’s Mushroom and Black Bean Meatless Meatballs we’d tried sometime last year but he did want some meatless meatballs, and he suggested using paneer to make them. Kofta recipes (which we searched) were very Indian and deep-fried, so I took TheFitFoodieMama’s recipe and adapted it slightly to make my very own meatless meatballs. I’ve only made them once so far, and genius that I am, I screwed up slightly which is why they look undercooked, but…
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recipe; portobello mushroom burger
I was never a huge fan of mushroom burgers. Or maybe I just never found one I enjoyed. And then while we were in Auckland, the husband and I had a hankering for burgers and I found this recipe. At the time, I couldn’t find everything in that recipe at the shops, so I adapted. As I do. And it was yum. I’ve used this marinade a couple of times for mushrooms without the bread, and it’s just as yum. I’ve made this with both white and apple cider vinegar, and there’s a very small difference in taste. We tend to use a lot of apple cider vinegar at home…
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recipe; lighter tomato cream pasta
Pasta was my go-to meal of choice when the husband and I were living in New Zealand. We were both students, and it was just easy to make after a long day. It never hurt that pasta is always yummy. So there was always at least two cans of tomatos in the apartment and a packet of fusili and gnocchi. I adapted this recipe from Texanerin, and after realising I could make pink sauce with cream cheese instead of cream and cheese, I have not looked back. I’ve even adapted my cousin’s three cheese sauce into a cream cheese type sauce! This can be made with any pasta ever. I’ve…
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recipe; eggless spinach & mushroom quiche
The first time I tried to make an eggless quiche, it was a vegan recipe I added lots of cheese to. I liked it. I did! My husband? Not so much. So I made it very rarely. Maybe twice in total. But then. But then. My husband’s gripe with the quiche was a lack of flavour. We’re Indian, we need things full of flavour, so I understood. But I also really wanted quiche. So I went looking for a way to mash up the vegan quiche recipe with a normal spinach and mushroom quiche recipe, and wound up making something my entire family would not mind having again. Thankfully, I…
in the well-worn pages of books