The Aussie Who Ate The Big Apple

[HomeCookin’] seared salmon w/ roasted sweet potato, pumpkin & bacon risotto. Holy cow, this is good!

This would have to be one of / if not the best risotto I have ever made. The flavors were rich and smokey thanks to some good quality thick cut bacon and my secret ingredient of homemade pumpkin soup added another layer of sweet & creamy goodness.

[Pre-heat] oven to 375F and roast one large sweet potato - (diced and tossed with olive oil, salt & pepper & one crushed clove of garlic) for about 20 mins until fork tender.

[Saute] about 8 slices of thick cut, peppered bacon that’s roughly chopped in a dry pan. Let the bacon get to a crispy point and then scoop onto plate - reserving the bacon fat in pan.
Add 1 carrot & 1 stalk of celery, diced into very small pieces into the bacon fat.
Saute until soft. Add a clove of crushed garlic and a cup of sliced mushrooms and saute for another 2-3 mins.
Add 1.5 cups of Aborio Rice and saute the grains and toss with any residual oil/fat.
Once you can smell the rice becoming slightly fragrant, turn the heat to medium and add a cup of broth.
I used chicken stock but you can definitely use vegetable if you prefer.

[Stir] and fold the rice into the broth until the liquid evaporates. Continue to add the stock to the risotto and stir through until the rice is al dente. (About 20 mins)
I also added the juice of one lemon and my *secret* maybe not so secret ingredient - about 2/3 cup of homemade pumpkin/carrot soup.
**You could substitute with some butternut squash soup from the carton - but fresh is probably what made this SO GOOD. /
Stir through the roasted sweet potato.

[Serve] with a squeeze of lemon juice and fresh grated parmesan!
We served ours alongside some simple seared salmon, marinated with lemon & garlic.

ENJOY!

[HomeCookin] it’s a debate steak night. Sautéed veggies + filet w/ chimichurri sauce.

Here’s how:

[SAUTE] one large onion in olive oil until it starts to caramelize. Add a cup of small cremini mushrooms and saute on high heat. Season with salt + pepper. Throw in a punnet of cherry tomatoes and saute until they start to burst. Add some chopped green onions + roughly chopped bunch of broccolini and stir through for a couple of mins until greens have started to cook. Transfer to low oven to keep warm.

[BLEND] a bunch of cilantro, 3 cloves of garlic, some chives (or some green onion), juice of a lime, lime zest, salt/pepper and 3 tbsp olive oil. Blend in food processor/mixer until mixed. If you need a little more oil, add.

[SEAR] Filet Mignon, seasoned with salt and pepper in a hot pan for 6 mins on one side, then 4 mins on the other. Rest for 3 mins.

[SERVE] The steak, veggies and delicious Chimichurri sauce.

ENJOY!

HomeCookin: roasted cauliflower + corn tacos - inspired by @eringleeson & @cultivatewines. I was reading the delicious post on Cultivate Wine’s blog and fell in love with the idea of using roasted cauliflower and corn in my rotation for taco night.

My version is a little adapted but turned out to be delicious none the less.

MIX|

1 small head cauliflower roughly chopped, two ears of corn kernals, two cloves diced garlic, one onion thinly sliced, salt, pepper, olive oil, red pepper flakes + paprika.

ROAST|

in a 400F oven until charred, caramelized and cooked through.

SERVE|

with warmed corn tortillas + chipotle sour cream + crispy lettuce & red cabbage w/ a simple lime juice/olive oil/salt & pepper dressing

SO GOOD!

[HomeCookin] using the left over slow cooker pork, we made a delicious Vietnamese Pho! So good. #food #asian #noodles #pho (Taken with Instagram at East Village)