Peppadew Picante

I have recently been introduced to a lovely new ingredient named Peppadew. Described as whole sweet piquante peppers coming in mild and hot varieties - these unusual and flamboyant fruits can be enjoyed in unexpected and extreme ways. This product is blended with a secret recipe that makes every juicy mouthful unforgettable.

So far I have enjoyed these delicious morsels on home made gourmet pizzas and also chopped them up into sexy salads. But the options are endless. I highly recommend and for my next peppadew experience I'm hoping to stuff them with some interesting fillings. Recipes to follow...

For more information check out the website on http://www.peppadew.com/

Thaislaw

It's mid-week and I'm trying to control my calorie intake as I seem to have overdone the naughties over the weekend. Had a peek in the fridge in the hope of finding some kind of healthy but tasty ingredients. Spotted a bag of coleslaw - ie ready shredded carrots and cabbage with a couple of sachets of dressing which inspired me to whip up some of my favourite asian flavoured coleslaw...

Thaislaw

500g shredded cabbage and carrot (ready bagged from the supermarket or do it yourself)

3 Tbs freshly squeezed lime juice

2 Tbs sweet chilli sauce

1 Tbs fish sauce

1 Tbs oil

1 handful coriander leaves

additional chilli if required

Open bag of coleslaw and empty contents into a mixing bowl. I discard the dressing sachets straight into the rubbish as they usually have that fake mayonaissy taste which I really despise. In another bowl mix the remaining ingredients to make a dressing. You will need to check the balance of salty/sweet/spicy flavours and adjust accordingly. If chilli is your friend, add more in the form of fresh birds eyes, or the dried variety. Toss the dressing through the slaw to thoroughly coat all the vegetables and leave to infuse for about 20 minutes. Serve with your favourite cold cuts. I find cold shredded roast chicken or beef works pretty well. Today I added some shaved beef from the deli. If you really want to posh it up, you could add some dried shrimp and crushed roast peanuts. This dish is reminiscent of my favourite thai green papaya salad.

Friday Night Dinners...

Our family runs by the 80-20 rule - healthy food most of the time, but we do also need our treats. And so began the Friday night tradition... Basically the most well behaved person in the house gets to choose their favourite dinner and dessert. This person almost always turns out to be my 4 year old son Jack who has a penchant for fish and chips and all things junk. The challenge is to health it up a bit and also add a new spin on it. So tonight Jack would like Chicken Burgers and Chips.

Chicken Burgers are a firm favourite in this household and here follows the recipe for my favourite style of burger - chicken accessorised with bacon and avocado. I like to serve my burgers in mini pita breads as a healthier option as we prefer more protein and less carbs in our diet. Normally I am quite a purist when it comes to all things culinary but when it comes to chips - I can't be asked. I usually resort to buying ready fried chips hot from the local chip shop smothered in salt and vinegar or bags of the cholestrol friendly variety from the frozen section. These are best served with cheats aoli which I whip up by mixing my favourite mayonnaise with roast garlic(chop the top off a whole garlic, drench in olive oil and roast til soft before squeezing it out and mixing it into the mayo).

Chicken, Bacon and Avocado Burgers

2 chicken breasts
4 rashers bacon
1 egg
1/4 cup flour
1 tbs plum sauce
salt and pepper
4 wholemeal pita breads
avocado
tomato
lettuce
gherkins
aoli

In a food processor whizz together chicken, bacon, egg, flour, plum sauce and seasoning. If you don't have plum sauce(a personal favourite of mine), cranberry sauce would be a great substitute. Divide your pulverized burger mix into 4 and shape into burger size patties. Place on a greased baking tray and grill for about 7 minutes on each size until golden.

Spray pita breads with a little olive oil spray then grill on either side to crispen up. Slit open the pita bread and spread some aoli on the base. Then add layers of lettuce, tomato, cucumber, chicken bacon burger and finally some mashed avocado.

Serve with fries on the side and a dollop of aoli.

Tonight these burgers were enjoyed with a bottle of french pinot noir and followed by some very dark and delicious chocolate.