Food served in a bowl
There’s something about eating from a bowl that’s instantly comforting.
Maybe it’s a subconscious return to the spoon-fed days of childhood, when everything came from a bowl (in the time before baby-led feeding freed parents from pureeing everything).
A bowl of something is portable enough to eat curled up on the sofa, standing at the kitchen window, or - if you’re very lucky - propped up against a couple of squashy pillows.
Here are three current bowlbound favourites at my place.
BLUEBERRY SMOOTHIE BOWL
Serves 2 Preparation time: 5 minutes Cooking time: nil If you’re the kind of person who drinks smoothies thinking they will be good for you, here’s a tip: you’ll find them much more filling if you make them a little thicker and actually sit down to eat them from a bowl. You can make them look a lot prettier, too.
1 cup frozen blueberries, plus a few extra for garnishing 1 large frozen banana 1 navel orange, peeled and cut into chunks
1 tablespoon ground almonds or LSA
2 tablespoons Greek yoghurt
2 tablespoons chopped nuts, seeds, dried fruit
Put the berries, banana, orange, and ground almonds in a blender and whiz until smooth. Divide between two small bowls, then garnish with the yoghurt, reserved berries, and nuts or dried fruit. Serve immediately.
SPICY PEAS WITH POACHED EGGS
Serves 2 as a light meal Preparation time: 5 minutes Cooking time: 10 minutes The go-to desperate dinner in our house used to be fried eggs, homemade chips, and frozen peas, but we’ve since replaced it with this spicy number.
With a bit of practice you can stir-fry the peas and poach the eggs simultaneously, making this a very quick answer to the ‘there’s nothing to eat’ problem.
If you’re even better at multitasking, a rasher or two of bacon wouldn’t go amiss.
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 cloves garlic, finely sliced 2 good pinches dried chilli flakes 6 spring onions, finely sliced (white parts only) 3 cups frozen peas 2-4 free-range eggs (1-2 per person)
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons chilli oil, optional
Heat the olive oil in a large pan and set a pot of water on to boil. Add the garlic, chilli, and onion to the oil, and cook gently for a couple of minutes, then add the peas.
Raise the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the peas are bright green. While the peas are cooking, add the vinegar to the now-simmering water in the pot and poach the eggs.
To serve, divide the peas between two bowls and top with the poached eggs. Drizzle over the chilli oil, and serve.
BROCCOFLOWER TABOULI BOWLS WITH FETA & HERBS
Serves 2-3
Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 10 minutes This takes the tabouli concept and replaces grains with finely chopped broccoflower (or cauliflower) for a light but surprisingly sustaining salad.
Throwing in some toasted nuts or pinenuts ups the protein content and adds crunch.
1 whole broccoflower or cauliflower
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 red capsicum, finely diced 1 cup crumbled feta 1 cup kalamata olives, chopped 1 cup finely chopped fresh mint and flat leaf parsley
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius, and line an oven tray with baking paper. Grate the broccoflower (using a food processor is easiest), then tip into a bowl and mix with three tablespoons of olive oil. Spread this mixture evenly over the prepared tray, and roast for 10-15 minutes, until starting to turn golden. Set aside to cool.
While you’re waiting, put the capsicum, feta, olives, and herbs in a large bowl. Add the cooled broccoflower and toss. Add the herbs except the reserved olive oil and lemon juice, and toss again to coat. Season with salt and pepper, and serve. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for a day.
See more of Lucy’s recipes at kitchen-maid.blogspot.co.nz