Italian Green Bean Salad

It was a particularly warm day and I was not feeling at all tempted by the thought of preparing dinner. I wanted something light, healthy and most of all quick. Doing the running inventory of the refrigerator contents in my head I remembered the bag of green beans purchased on the last supermarket venture. Beans would be perfect! But not weighed down with lentils as in the more traditional bean salad. And there were no almonds to do another classic bean style. What else could be used? I know! An Italian style using our Tuscan Style Capsicum Pesto Dip Mix!
Perfect for cooking as well as using as a dip base, the sweet flavours of the capsicum was just what I was looking for along with the Italian flavours.
And oh so simple to make! Enjoy...

Ingredients:
300g green beans
3 roma tomatoes, deseeded
1/2 large white onion
1/2 green capsicum
60g marinated fetta
2 tbsps olive oil
1 tbsp Tuscan Pesto Dip Mix

Method:
Top and tail beans, cut into 2 cm pieces, blanch and ice.
Dice onions capsicum and tomatoes in Rip Cord Veggie Chopper. Transfer to bowl.
Add Dip Mix, olive oil and beans, combine.
Crumble feta and stir through.

Serve with grilled chicken and a chilled Chardonnay

Tiramisu: Heaven on a Plate

In a past life I used to spend the best part of my week behind the scenes at an Italian restaurant. The bonus for this? Access to fresh pasta and gnocchi, and being able to enjoy fresh homemade tiramisu on a daily basis. It appears I may have conquered my addiction as I am fast approaching 12 months without savouring it's creamy delights.
We have a delicious Queensland Coffee blend in our Your Inspiration At Home range, Rum Royale Coffee (100gm $11.95). I am not a coffee drinker (tea for me thankyou) so have never indulged, but I love the smell of this blend. I was contemplating ways I can use it, and I think it would be perfect substituted for espresso in Tiramisu. I am going to give it a test run today and will report on the results. For those of you who would also like to give it a whirl, here's the recipe.

½ - cup (125ml) espresso (or YIAH Rum Royale Coffee), at room temperature
½ - cup (125ml) Marsala wine
3 tablespoons Amaretto Disaronno
2 large eggs, separated, chilled
pinch of salt
7 tablespoons (90g) sugar, divided
1 cup (250g) mascarpone
twelve 3½-inch ladyfingers (70g, or 3 ounces)
Espresso powder,or shaved chocolate, for serving

Method:


1. Mix together the espresso, and Amaretto. The mixture should taste strongly of alcohol. If not, add more until it does. (That flavor will tone down when mixed with the other ingredients, but feel free to adjust to taste.)



2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, or by hand, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they begin to get stiff. Beat in half of the sugar until stiff. Scrape the egg whites into a small bowl. Keep it chilled until assembling time is due.

3. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until stiff and light-colored, add the Marsala wine and in Bagne Marie (double boiler), cook the mix until an emulsion like Hollandaise is achieved. (This will avoid Salmonella from the yolks to ever develop) Keep it chilled until assembling time is due.

4. By hand, beat in the mascarpone with a spatula or whisk, until lump-free.

5. Fold in half of the beaten egg whites, then the remaining half, just until fully incorporated.

6. Submerge each ladyfinger in the espresso mixture for 5-10 seconds, until completely, utterly soaked. (Dried ladyfingers will take longer to saturate than softer ones.) Break the ladyfinger in half to be sure; they should be dropping wet, and can't be saturated enough. Then layer them over the mascarpone cream in each vessel. Use two ladyfingers per glass.



7. Grate a light amount of chocolate over each.

8. Top with remaining mascarpone cream, cover, and refrigerate at least four hours, but preferably overnight.

9. Right before serving, shake powdered espresso generously (or top with more shaved chocolate).



Recipe and photos:
www.cookwork.com

Pantry Raiding Dessert

My sweet tooth was in overdrive last night, and with no chocolate in the house things were looking pretty grim. The only option was to come up with a dessert, and fast.
My first thought was a bread and butter pudding but quickly realised there were no eggs in the house either (I refuse to buy cage eggs and at my local supermarket the other day that was all that was available). Desperation was starting to set in so I rummaged deeper in the back of the pantry and found three possibilities. Condensed milk, sliced peaches and mandarin segments. Peach crumble! Rolled oats, check. Brown sugar, check. Flour, check. Butter, check. Perfect, we were on a winner, salvation was not far away!
On a whim I decided to combine the peaches and mandarin and the result was fantastic. The brash sweetness of canned peaches was softened by the tang of the mandarin, one pot of home made custard later and dessert was a winner!
Simple, tasty, fast.
You never know what you will find in the pantry, have a look in yours and inspire yourself too!

Rainy Days & Comfort Food

Today is a very non-productive day for me due to the recurrence of the head cold which seems committed to staying the entire winter, and the grey rainy weather outside.
So of course my thoughts turn to delicious hearty and comforting winter food which even though I cannot smell at the moment I am still drawing pictures in my mind that are making the taste buds salivate.
Number one? Winning by a landslide is mashed potato.
Oh yum, beautiful white fluffy mash. Topped with sea salt flakes and cracked pepper, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. So simple, so divine.
Or topped with a white sauce: parsley, cheese or if I'm really feeling like cooking, a fresh hollandaise.

Number two: Soup.
A meal in a bowl, perfect for slurping in bed while propped up by pillows with a sleeping cat on your lap. Even better with a crusty baguette with lashings of real butter (margarine is not welcome in this house), just so long as you catch the crumbs in your bowl and not in your bed! Favourite soups include minestrone, pumpkin, creamy curry cauliflour, and a spicy kumara.

Number Three: Home Made Puddings
I had many thoughts swirling through my mind for the 3rd and final spot, but coming back to the "comfort food concept" there was no going past this one for me. From a basic bread and butter pudding to a rhubarb crumble, they are so simple to make and so rustically delicious. If only I could recreate my grandmother's gramma pie that unfortunately left my world of experience when she did. I did get her to show me once or twice but, much like myself, she never bothered with measurements either and there was no "recipe" as such to share. It was a strange combination of seasoning the boiled gramma with both salt and sugar until the desired taste and consistency was achieved; but that taste was so good that I have never tasted anything to compare.
And the best part comfort wise of enjoying puddings? Smothering it with home made custard...heaven.

HOME MADE QUESADILLAS

EASY SPICY BEAN QUESADILLAS

These are so yummy and so simple to make, you can easily make them with everyday pantry items and they are devoured as soon as they are served. Based loosely on a Masterclass presentation by Matt Moran on Series 2 of Masterchef Australia.

You will need:
Tortilla Wraps
Cream Cheese
Mozzarella or shredded cheese
Red Kidney Beans
Avocado
Spanish Onion
YIAH Salsa Dip Mix
Fresh diced tomatoes
To Assemble:
On one of your tortillas spread a layer of Cream Cheese, then a layer of Salsa (simply combine tomatoes with salsa dip mix as per label. Sprinkle with kidney beans, diced onion, avocado slices. Scatter shredded cheese over the top. Place another tortilla on top as a “lid”.
To Cook:
In a non stick fry pan gently brown one side, and then flip and cook other side until golden brown (no more than a few minutes each side or they will burn).
Pop onto a greased baking tray and into the oven for another 10 minutes or so, until all your cheese is melted. Slice into wedges, pile high on a platter and enjoy!

What I Do...

I became a Your Inspiration At Home Independent Consultant 3 months ago after answering an advertisement looking for Founding Consultants and Leaders. I joined the company for the love of the product and soon discovered that there were many people out there like me that loved making 'Everyday Gourmet' and needed some Inspiration in their homes. And so began my journey...

My role as a Your Inspiration At Home Consultant is to predominantly provide you with solutions to your culinary needs. Whether that is helping inspire you to create delicious meal solutions, or show you how modern and funky gadgets can save you time in the kitchen, my job is to help you (via our Good Taste Demonstrations) create delicious gourmet meals in your own home.

I provide service and support in a number of ways, first and foremost through our Party Plan program that enables me to walk you through the features and benefits of our great product range. Whether you view that range through hosting a YIAH Good Taste Demonstration to gain all your Host Rewards, or by scheduling an appointment at my Home Office, is entirely up to you.

I offer a mailing list that provides tips and recipes for using your YIAH Products, and also offer great hints and gourmet ideas via my Facebook page and personal website (www.aly-brown.com).

I welcome new consultants to my team through our wonderful Independent Business Opportunity, and provide them with ongoing support and access to cutting edge training tools to enable them to begin their own successful business as a Your Inspiration At Home consultant.

Does this sound like something you could do? Let's have a chat and see if Your Inspiration At Home can enhance your life too...

Aly Brown
www.aly-brown.com
+61 401 228 556