Weeks 2 and 3 Term 1 2015

Our first menu for 2015 was:

Pasta with Herb and Tomato Sauce

Salad of the Imagination

Vegetable Fritters with Minted Yoghurt

Pizza of the Imagination

Cheesy Vegetables

As usual all was delicious!!

Here are our recipes and accompanying photos - there are some fabulous photos that I have not been able to publish as I am awaiting information about publicity permssion.

Pasta with Herb and Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

Pasta dough (see separate recipe)

1kg tomatoes or 2 cans (2 x 400g)

2 onions

2 cloves garlic

½ cup fresh herbs or 2 teaspoons dried basil or oregano

Oil

Salt and pepper

1 cup Parmesan cheese

• See separate recipe for pasta
• Peel and crush garlic
• Chop tomatoes
• Peel and chop onions
• Chop herbs
• Fry onions
• Add garlic, tomatoes and herbs
• Simmer gently for 30 minutes
• Taste and add salt and pepper to taste
• Add to cooked pasta
• Grate cheese and serve separately

Basic Pasta Recipe

Ingredients:

3 cups pasta flour

2 teaspoons salt

4 eggs

Flour for dusting

·         Place everything into food processor

·         Blend until a soft dough is produced

·         Cover in plastic wrap and leave for at least one hour

·         Break into 6 pieces

·         For each piece:

o   Flatten

o   Make into rectangle

o   Run through machine on widest setting 6 times – folding it back to original size each time

o   Change to next setting and roll once

o   Repeat to second thinnest setting (cut in half if it gets too long)

o   Dust with flour if pasta gets sticky

·         Repeat with other 5 pieces

·         Use machine attachment to cut pasta of your choice

·         Rest pasta for as long as possible

·         Boil in salted water 5 minutes

Salad of the Imagination

This salad has been a frequent visitor to our menus – students are encouraged to choose whatever they would like to put into a salad from any fruit, vegetable, herb or flower on our harvest table.

• Select seasonal produce, about 4 cups of mixed salad greens makes a good base. Then add grapes, oranges, carrots, pears, apples, beetroot, melon ........
• Having made the selection it is simply a question of washing, drying, chopping, ripping, slicing as appropriate.
• Similarly the dressing is ‘created’ by the students

o   1 part of acidic liquid - vinegar (any type), lemon juice or lime juice

o   4 parts oil

o   And then more imagination is required!! Add any of these items:

§  Honey or sugar

§  Mustard

§  Herbs – parsley, tarragon, mint, coriander, bergamot, ....

§  Spices – coriander, cumin, paprika, cardamom ......

o   Whichever combination you choose, always season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.          

o   Taste the dressing and adjust the flavours as necessary before using.

·       Once everything is in the serving bowl the next part of the imaginative process is to add garnishes!

o   Croutons
o   ‘Chips’ (wafer thin slices of crisply fried vegetables) – sweet potato, carrot, parsnip .....
o   Shavings, crumblings or cubes of cheese – feta, parmesan, cheddar, mozzarella .......
o   Olives
o   Hard boiled eggs
o   Crumbled bacon
o   Nuts – pine, walnuts, almonds, cashew .....
o   Seeds – pumpkin, sunflower ......
o   Edible flowers – borage, marigold, nasturtium......

It is very important to be gentle with this salad – too much mixing and everything blends together – mixing with finger tips is recommended

Vegetable Fritters with Mint Yoghurt

Ingredients:

Fritters:

1kg vegetables

2/3 cup flour

5 eggs

Oil for frying

Sauce:

1 cup natural yoghurt

20 mint leaves

Fritters:

• Peel and chop vegetables (very small pieces)
• Whisk eggs
• Mix vegetables, flour and eggs
• Fry fritters (about a dessert spoonful size)
• Place on baking trays and keep warm in oven
•  

Mint Yoghurt

• Chop mint
• Mix with yoghurt

Pizza of the Imagination

(makes 2 pizzas)

Ingredients:

Pizza dough (see separate recipe)

2 cups vegetables

1 onion

1 clove garlic

1 cup Mozzarella Cheese

Olive oil

Fresh basil or other seasonal herbs

Flour

2 cups tomato paste

• Turn oven on to 200 degrees
• Roll out dough into 2 rectangles
• Place on lined trays
• Spread with tomato paste
• Choose vegetables
• Chop, slice or tear vegetables
• Crush garlic
• Grate cheese
• Cover with vegetables, garlic and cheese
• Bake 25 minutes
• Chop fresh herbs
• Sprinkle fresh herbs on top of cooked pizza

Pizza Dough

 (makes 2 pizzas)

Ingredients:

1 ¼  cup water

3 cups (400g) bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

4 teaspoons yeast

4 teaspoons oil

• Place ingredients into bread maker in the order listed above
• Press MENU to setting DOUGH
• Press START
• Dough will be ready in about 90 minutes

Note:

If you do not have a bread machine:

• Mix ingredients as above & knead for 10 minutes
• Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour (until double in size)

Cheesy Vegetables

Ingredients:

2kg seasonal vegetables

80g butter

3 cups milk

4 tablespoons plain flour

Pinch nutmeg (finely grated)

300g grated cheese

1 cup breadcrumbs

Salt and pepper to taste

Topping:

1 cup grated cheese

·         Choose vegetables

·         Chop vegetables

·         Boil vegetables for about 15 minutes, until tender

·         Drain

·         Put vegetables into two baking dishes

·         Make sauce in microwave

o   Melt butter in microwave

o   Add flour and stir

o   Add 2 cups milk and stir

o   Add nutmeg and grated cheese

o   Microwave on high for 1 minute then stir

o   Repeat microwaving for 1 minute and stirring until sauce is thick, smooth and cooked

o   Add more milk if necessary – sauce should just pour

o   Add salt and pepper to taste

·         Pour over vegetables

·         Sprinkle 1 cup grated cheese and 1 cup breadcrumbs over vegetables

·         Bake in oven 200 degrees for 15 minutes

·         Grill for 2 to 3 minutes until crisp and brown

Everything in the garden is flourishing and our students have been busy harvesting, mulching watering and building ‘wigwams’ for runner beans to climb. Blue class did some major harvesting of fruit which they then packaged and sold to staff. And Green Class has adopted our Worm Farm for Term 1.

And finally a few more photos: