Chilled avocado soup with grilled corn
5 Chilled avocado soup with grilled corn
The key to chilled soups is to ensure they’re well seasoned to bring out the flavours, which are dulled by chilling. And they must be well chilled so, in the interests of speediness, here we’ve poured the soup into serving bowls and popped them in the freezer for 15 minutes. If you have more time, chill it in the fridge overnight.
Serves 4
2 chilled avocados, coarsely chopped
¾ cup (firmly packed) coriander, plus extra
sprigs to serve
2 spring onions, coarsely chopped
1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
1 long green chilli, coarsely chopped
400 ml coconut milk
Juice of 3 limes
2 corn cobs, husks and silk removed 1½ tbsp olive oil or avocado oil, plus extra
for drizzling
½ tsp smoked paprika, plus extra to serve 100 gm mixed cherry tomatoes, halved or
quartered, depending on size
1 Process avocado, coriander, spring onion, garlic, and chilli in a blender until smooth. Add coconut milk and two-thirds of the lime juice, season to taste and blend until very smooth. Transfer to serving bowls and place in the freezer to chill while you grill the corn.
2 Heat a barbecue or char-grill pan to high. Drizzle corn cobs with oil, season with smoked paprika and salt to taste, and grill, turning occasionally, until charred
(5-6 minutes). Slice kernels from cobs, toss in a bowl with tomatoes, olive oil and remaining lime juice, and season to taste. Divide among soup bowls, top with coriander sprigs and extra smoked paprika and serve.
6 Summer tomato curry with cauliflower rice
This simple curry is great served with steamed basmati rice, but it’s also fantastic with the cauliflower rice we have here. The cauliflower rice can simply be steamed; we like to add a bit more flavour by frying it with mustard seeds, onion and garlic. A dollop of yoghurt would add a touch of richness if you fancy it.
Serves 4
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
20 gm ginger, finely grated
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 birdseye chilli, thinly sliced
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground garam masala
400 gm canned cherry tomatoes
2 large sprigs fresh curry leaves
6 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
Coriander sprigs and lime wedges, to serve
Cauliflower rice
600 gm cauliflower, coarsely chopped 1½ tbsp coconut oil
¼ onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1 Heat coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, add onion, ginger, garlic and chilli and fry until tender (3-4 minutes). Stir in spices until fragrant (30 seconds), then add canned tomatoes, curry leaves and 150ml water, bring to a simmer and cook until well flavoured (6-7 minutes). Add tomato wedges, simmer until beginning to break down (2-3 minutes) and season to taste.
2 Meanwhile, for cauliflower rice, process cauliflower in a food processor until very finely chopped. Heat coconut oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add onion and garlic and sauté until tender. Stir in mustard seeds until they begin to pop, then stir in cauliflower and fry until just tender (2-3 minutes). Season to taste and serve with tomato curry, coriander and lime wedges.
7 Roast barramundi with kale, fennel and broccoli slaw
A crunchy slaw is guaranteed to make you feel refreshed (and virtuous) almost instantly. It might sound like an odd idea to massage the kale before making the salad, but this softens the leaves and makes it far more pleasant to eat raw.
Serves 4
1½ tbsp olive oil
4 skinless barramundi fillets (about 150gm each)
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon, plus lemon wedges to serve
Roasted nuts and seeds, to serve (see note) Dukkah, to serve
Kale, fennel and broccoli slaw
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Juice of 1½ lemons
2 tbsp buttermilk
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
200 gm (2 cups) coarsely chopped kale 200 gm broccoli, finely chopped
1 baby fennel bulb, thinly shaved on a mandolin, fronds coarsely chopped
1/ cup coarsely chopped dill
3
1/ cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley 3
2 tbsp finely chopped chives
1 Preheat oven to 200C. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add fish and fry until well browned (2-3 minutes), then turn and brown other side. Scatter with lemon rind, season to taste and roast until just cooked through (1-2 minutes).
2 Meanwhile, for kale, fennel and broccoli slaw, combine garlic and half the lemon juice in a screwtop jar and stand to soften (1-2 minutes). Add buttermilk and half the oil, season to taste and shake to combine. Combine kale, remaining lemon juice and remaining olive oil in a bowl, season to taste and massage kale until beginning to soften (1-2 minutes). Add broccoli, fennel and fronds and herbs, drizzle with buttermilk dressing to taste and toss to combine. Drizzle roast barramundi with a little extra buttermilk dressing, scatter with roasted nuts and seeds, and dukkah and serve with slaw and lemon wedges.
Note Greengrocers and delicatessens sell a mix of roasted nuts and seeds, usually containing pepitas, sunflower seeds and a mix of nuts; otherwise use your favourite roasted nuts.
8 Raspberry yoghurt slushie
This is arguably the simplest dessert – a cheat’s granita fancies things up a little. It would also make an excellent breakfast dish with crunchy granola or Bircher muesli added to the layering.
Makes 4-6
200 gm frozen raspberries
Juice of ½ orange and ½ lemon
500 gm thick Greek-style yoghurt
250 gm strawberries (about 1 punnet), hulled
and cut into wedges
125 gm fresh raspberries (about 1 punnet)
Honey, for drizzling
1 Process raspberries, orange juice and lemon juice in a blender until medium smooth. Transfer to a metal tray and place in freezer until required.
2 Spoon a little yoghurt into serving glasses or bowls, top with strawberries and raspberries, then a little more yoghurt. Top with remaining fruit, then spoon frozen raspberry mixture on top and serve immediately with honey.