Baked Pumpkin With Black Sesame Seeds And Thyme

It’s pumpkin season here in Western Australia and I love this way of baking it, it just looks so pretty!

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients

1/2 large butternut pumpkin, peeled and seeded

1-2 teaspoons oil

2 teaspoons black sesame seeds

1 teaspoon dried thyme

Salt flakes

Pepper

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.

Slice the pumpkin and then cut into chunks.

In a bowl, combine the pumpkin and oil.

Spread the pumpkin over the prepared tin.

Sprinkle over the sesame seeds, thyme, salt flakes and pepper.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until cooked through and colouring a little.

Tempeh With Sumac And Zatar

Having lived in Indonesia I love tempeh and it works really well with the Middle Eastern flavours of sumac and zatar. I needs to be fried a little with the spices before popping it in the oven for a final roasting.

You could use a firm tofu here but just stir fry it in the pan without the baking in the oven.

Serves 2.

Ingredients

200g tempeh

50ml oil

1 small red onion, sliced finely

1 garlic clove, sliced finely

2 teaspoons sumac

3 teaspoons zatar

1 small capsicum, sliced into strips

a few thin slices of lime

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Centigrade.

In an oven proof pan, heat the oil gently.

Add the onion and cook slowly until the onion is soft, add the garlic, sumac and two teaspoons of zatar and cook for one minute until fragrant.

Turn the heat up to high and add the tempeh, cook for one minute stirring well.

Add the capsicum and stir through.

Top with the lime slices.

Pop the pan into the oven and bake for 15 minutes until the capsicum is beginning to colour.

Jerk Chicken

The boys love this, possibly because it means they can say jerk without getting in trouble!

There is enough spice mix here for one large chicken but to be honest I normally make triple and keep it in a jar for three months as we use it regularly, it’s so handy when you just need to find lime juice and vinegar and only one spice jar.

As with many of my recipes, this is not authentic, the traditional spicy chillies that should be used are a no no with one of my sons and I use the powdered garlic and onion to save time and allow me to have a stash in the spice drawer.

I like to buy a whole chook and cut it up, I find wielding a cleaver very satisfying at the best of times! It’s a good skill to have as you are left with the spine and neck which I roast along with the pieces and then use this and the bones from the pieces for making stock. Jerk bones make lovely bean based soups!

Serves 6.

Ingredients

4 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon dried oregano

2 teaspoons ground all spice

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground ginger

2 teaspoons ground onion powder

1 teaspoon ground garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1 tablespoon brown sugar

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1.8kg chicken, cut into 10 pieces

Method

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix really well.

Cover and refrigerate overnight, if you have time.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade.

Line two baking sheets with baking parchment.

Spread the chicken out on the baking parchment, skin side up.

Bake for 25 minutes and then baste regularly until fully cooked and the skin is crispy, around 50-60 minutes total.

Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Herby Sausage Rolls

I make a silly amount of sausage rolls at this time of year for filling my freezer and various school and club wind ups.

These rolls don’t have the traditional sage but marjoram, oregano and thyme instead.

I use pre made puff pastry sheets which come with a piece of plastic between each layer, once I make the rolls I then use the plastic to wrap two long rolls separated by plastic to make it easy to just take individual rolls out of the freezer at a later date.

If freezing, roll and seal the rolls but don’t brush with egg. Once they are defrosted, brush with egg and cut to your desired size.

Makes 20 large sausage rolls or 80 mini rolls.

Ingredients

1kg minced pork

1/2 onion, chopped very finely

75g fresh white bread crumbs

2 teaspoons dried marjoram

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder

1 teaspoon chilli flakes

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 egg, beaten

5 ready rolled puff pastry sheets, 25x25cm, defrosted

Method

Preheat the oven to 200degrees Centigrade.

Combine all of the ingredients, except the egg and pastry, in a large bowl, mix really well by hand.

Lay the pastry out on your work surface.

Take handfuls of the sausage meat and form into long sausages to fit the length of the pastry sheets. The sausages should be around 1-2cm thick.

Place one sausage at the top and one at the bottom of each sheet.

Using a large knife, cut across the middle of the sheet to give you two separate sausages.

Brush the beaten egg along the cut side, fold over the pastry and use a fork to press and seal the pastry where the egg is.

Repeat with all of the rolls. Brush the long rolls with egg.

Cut into your desired size and place on a baking sheet, bake for 25-35 mins depending on size.