The Loft

The Home Base blog

Splash Of Colour

Make the most of this WA’s plentiful and locally grown produce with these inspiring recipes

14.11.2018

Roasted balsamic beetroot and sweet potato salad with pistachio and pepita seeds

Ingredients:

Salad

  • 2 tbsp pistachio
  • 2 tbsp pepita seeds
  • 1 medium sweet potato, sliced 1cm thick
  • 2 beetroots, diced 1cm cubes
  • 1 tbsp sea salt
  • 300g baby spinach

Balsamic dressing

  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
  • 80ml balsamic vinegar
  • 200ml vegetable oil

Method:

Balsamic dressing
Add mustard, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar in a bowl, and slowly add oil while whisking mixture.

Salad
Roast pistachio and pepita at 180C for 6 minutes. Roughly chop pistachio after roasting. Add half of the balsamic mixture to another bowl with sweet potato and beetroot. Season with sea salt and mix. Put mixture on a shallow tray and cook in an oven for 15-20 minutes at 200C. In another bowl, add baby spinach, roast sweet potato and beetroot with remaining balsamic dressing. Serve in a salad bowl and garnish with pepita and pistachio.


Kale, ricotta and mushroom lasagne

Ingredients:

  • 150g butter
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 diced brown onion
  • 1kg butter mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 bunch kale, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 cup cream
  • 400g of ricotta
  • 2 cups grated Parmesan
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1 packet wholemeal lasagna sheet (250g)
  • 8 slices cheddar
  • salt to taste

Method:

In a medium-sized pot, melt your butter until slightly burnt. Add vegetable oil then saute onion until browned. Add mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 3 mins then add kale and cook for 1 minute. Add cream and simmer for 3 minutes. Take pot off heat then add ricotta, Parmesan, lemon zest, and salt to taste.

In a baking dish, layer with lasagna sheets and top kale ricotta and mushroom mix, and repeat layers, finishing off with Parmesan, ricotta and cheddar slices. Bake in oven for 45 minutes
at 180C.


Orange chicken tenderloin with garlic butter roasted field mushroom and wild rice

Ingredients:

  • 300g wild rice
  • 1L water
  • 6 chicken tenderloins 200ml vegetable oil 1 tbsp minced garlic 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tbsp herb and garlic seasoning
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
  • 200ml orange juice
  • 3 medium field mushrooms
  • 2 dried figs diced
  • 1/2 orange diced
  • 100ml extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste

Garlic butter

  • 150g margarine
  • 2 tsp garlic paste
  • 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

Method:

In a pot, cook the wild rice in water and simmer for 40 minutes or until soft enough to eat. In a bowl, marinate chicken with vegetable oil, garlic, turmeric, herb and garlic seasoning, orange zest and orange juice. Marinate for half an hour. Peel skin off field mushrooms and add 1 tbsp of garlic butter on top of each. Cook in oven for 8-10 minutes at 200C. Pan fry chicken tenderloins with oil on a medium heat. Fry each side for 3 minutes. Strain wild rice and put in a bowl with diced fig and orange, and extra virgin olive oil and salt to taste, then mix.

Garlic Butter

Bring margarine to room temperature to soften, and mix in garlic and grated Parmesan.