Family Mess Hall - whole food meals dinners recipes

Cheat's Aloo Gobi (Indian spices potatoes and cauliflower) Ingredients:  Method:

Apricot, coconut and pecan muesli granola We love to start our day with a bowl of crunchy granola served with plain yoghurt and fresh fruit to add sweetness.   Ingredients: Method:

 Roasted pumpkin and vegetable soup Ingredients: Method:

These honey almond cookies have a delicious honey nut flavour and are lightly scented with warm cinnamon and vanilla. They have a crunchy in texture and are quick and easy to make. Enjoy a honey almond cookie with a hot cup of tea or coffee or pop them in your lunchbox for a tasty, sweet snack. These one bowl cookies are very easy to make and result in a deliciously golden and crunchy cookie.  Ingredients: 2  cup   self raising flour 1/2 cup ground oats 175   grams softened   butter 1   egg 1/2 cup   honey 1/2   cup   brown sugar 1/2   cup   white sugar 1/2   tsp   cinnamon 1/2   tsp   salt 3/4 cup ground almonds Method: 1. Begin by preheating your oven to 180 C.  2. Combine the wet ingredients and spices in a bowl.   3. Fold through your flour to form a crumbly dough and set it aside to rest for ten minutes.   4. Roll dough into golf ball sized balls and flatten slightly by pressing...

Light and crispy toasted coconut macaroons are a delight to eat If you ever find yourself with leftover egg whites, you must make these delicious coconut macaroons.  They're perhaps the quickest and easiest cookie to make and they're an excellent lunchbox filler. Ingredients: egg whites white sugar vanilla extract shredded dried coconut Method: 1. Preheat oven to 180C. 2. Beat eggwhites and sugar in a bowl until they form stiff peaks. 3. Gently fold in coconut. 4. Spoon onto lined baking tray and bake for 15 minutes. 

Essentially, hambagu rice is a rissole on rice or perhaps a Salisbury steak. What makes it special is the extra attention given to the healthy selection sides.  The tangy sauce is store-bought - either Okonomi sauce or the sweet Tonkatsu sauce.  In a pinch, you could mix together bbq sauce, tomato sauce, worcestershire sauce, soya sauce and thin it with a little water to taste. Hamburger Rice (Japanese Hambagu Rice) Recipe Ingredients: Method: Make your 'hambagu' 1. Combine 400g of ground beef, 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs, one egg, a splash of soya sauce, a splash of worcestershire sauce and season to your liking with salt and pepper. Form into small round patties and pan fry in a little oil. Steam your pumpkin 1. In a heatproof dish, place pumpkin chopped into chunky pieces.  Add 1/4 cup of water, a good splash of soya sauce, a teaspoon of sugar or a tablespoon of mirin, 1.5 teaspoons of dashi or mushroom stock granules. 2.  Mix to coat the pumpkin in the liquid. 3. Cove...

Here's a Chinese street food recipe that I love for it's crispy, oniony and yes, oily flavour.  It's definitely a family favourite in our household and is special to me as my very own grandmother taught me the correct way to shape them.  Ingredients: 2 cups plain flour 2 tblsp vegetable oil 0.5 cup boiling water 0.5 tsp salt 2 spring onions (finely chopped) 3 tblsp sesame oil vegetable oil for cooking Method: Make a dough  1. Combine dry ingredients and boiling water to form a dry dough. 2. Knead well (10 minutes). Wrap in waterproof food wrap and rest for 15 minutes. 3. Finely chop 2 stalks of spring onion. Form pancakes 1. Divide dough into 6 equal sized pieces.  Roll into balls. 2. Take one ball of dough and flatten to 2mm thin to make a circle.  3. Drizzle a half teaspoon of sesame oil over the dough and rub to coat the surface. Sprinkle over a large pinch (1.5 tablespoons) of chopped spring onions and a pinch of salt. 4. Roll your pastry disc into a ci...

This classic Chinese side dish is deliciously fresh and simple.  The flavour and aroma of ginger, sesame, spring onion and soya sauce infuse the cold silken tofu and provide contrasting texture. This recipe is vegan and vegetarian friendly and can be served with rice and a simple stir fry. Ingredients: 1 small package of silken tofu 1 spring onion chopped 2 tsp ginger (julienned) 4 tbsp fresh coriander (chopped) 2 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp sesame oil 2 tbsp vegetable oil 0.5 tsp roast sesame seeds Method: 1. Drain your silken tofu and place in a serving dish.  2. Prepare all other ingredients and place on top of tofu. 3. Heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a small pan until smoking hot. 4. Carefully drizzle the hot oil over the tofu and toppings. It will sizzle and pop! 5. Drizzle over sesame oil and soya sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds. 6. Serve with rice and other  dishes. 

Ingredients: 1 whole raw chicken a 5cm piece of ginger  4 spring onions 1 tsp salt 2 tsp  soya sauce 1/2 bunch fresh coriander 3 star anise 1 cinnamon stick 1 cucumber (sliced) 3 tomatoes (sliced) Method: Make the chicken 1.  Stuff chicken with 1/4 bunch of coriander, 1 whole spring onion and 5 slices of ginger. Place chicken breast side down in large stock pot with cinnamon stick, star anise and salt.   2. Fill pot with water until chicken is submerged. 3. Put the lid on the pot and place the pot on high heat.  When it comes to a rolling boil, reduce to medium high heat and continue to boil for 15 minutes.  4. When 15 minutes has passed, turn off the heat but leave the pot on the hot element for another hour. Do not remove the lid.  The chicken will continue to cook gently. 5. After one hour has passed, remove the chicken from the hot broth and allow to cool.  Optional: Place chicken in an ice bath to rapidly cool the chicken and to improve ...

Ingredients: 2 eggplants 2 zucchinis 1 cup long grain rice 1 tin crushed tomatoes 0.5 tsp allspice 0.5 tsp cumin 0.5 tsp dried oregano 2 tblsp chopped parsley 1 small onion (finely diced) 1 tsp crushed garlic 2 tblsp olive oil 250g ground beef (or other ground meat) salt and pepper to taste 0.5 cup vegetable stock Method: 1. Preheat oven to 180C.  Slice vegetables in half, lengthways.   2. Scoop out the centres of the vegetable to create a shallow well and place in baking dish.  Chop the excess vegetable and place in bowl. 3. Add onions, garlic, spices, herbs, ground meat, rice, salt and pepper to chopped eggplant and zucchini.  Mix until ingredients are evenly distributed throughout. 4. Drizzle olive oil over vegetables. 5. Loosly stuff vegetables with filling. 6. Pour over combined crushed tomatoes and stock. 7. Drizzle with a little extra olive oil and cover dish with foil. 8. Bake for 45 minutes or until vegetables and filling are cooked through. 

  You'll need: 5 hours, lamb shoulder, mixed coleslaw vegetables (eg red cabbage, zucchini, celery, broccoli, carrot), potatoes, dried spices and herbs, cocoa powder, plain yoghurt, lemon, garlic Make the spiced lamb shoulder 1. Preheat your oven to 150 degrees C or 300 degrees F. 2. Prepare the spice rub by mixing together 1 teaspoon each of cumin, ground coriander, paprika, brown sugar, cocoa, dried oregano and 1/2 teaspoon of chilli powder in a bowl. 3. Place the lamb shoulder in a lidded casserole dish and massage the spice mix into the meat with a splash of oil. Leave you lamb to marinate for at least 30 minutes at room temperature.  It will reduce the cook time if your meat isn't refrigerator cold. 4. Add one cup of water to the dish and put the lid on.  Place the casserole in the oven and allow the lamb shoulder to cook slowly for 4 hours. Baste the lamb shoulder with juices after two hours. 5. When done, remove the casserole dish from the oven and wait for slaw to...

Chicken, apple and almond salad You'll need: 15 minutes, leftover chicken, whole egg mayonnaise, greek yoghurt, mixed greens (I used silverbeet, rainbow chard, cos lettuce), bean sprouts, celery, apple, fresh herbs (I used chives), nuts (eg almonds), pre-prepared vinaigrette 1. Chop and layer the following vegetables in this order.  1 large silverbeet leaf, 2 small rainbow chard leaves, 3 large cos lettuce leaves, two handfuls of bean sprouts, 1 stalk of chopped celery, 1 large diced apple, a handful of chopped chives, roughly chopped almonds.  Then season with salt and pepper and prepare your favourite vinaigrette. 2.  Next place your shredded chicken in a separate dish and mix through a heaped tablespoon each of yoghurt and mayonnaise.  Season with salt and pepper. As a variation, you might like to add a teaspoon of curry power (for a retro twist) OR chopped basil and lemon zest.  Today we went with this most simple version. 3. It's ready to serve and enjoy!...

  You'll need: 1 hour, tomatoes, red capsicum, onion, mixed vegetables (eg carrots, mushrooms, celery, eggplant, zucchini), olive oil, dried italian herbs. 1. Preheat oven to 180c / 325f. 2. Chop a large amount of mixed vegetables.  I used tomatoes, celery, carrot, capsicum, onion, garlic and three sad looking mushrooms.  Eggplant and zucchini are delicious additions and will give your sauce a silky texture. 3. Douse vegetables in olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. 4.  Sprinkle with 1 tsp each of dried oregano and basil. 5. Roast the vegetables 40 - 45 minutes or until the edges are singed and golden. 6. Carefully transfer your roasted vegetables to a blender.  I used my Nutribullet  (which is still going strong after five years) but a  stick blender  will also work well. 7. If you find that your sauce is too thick, add some (or a combination of) olive oil, stock or lemon juice. 8. Serve over hot pasta and top with your choice of cheese,...

Recipe: 5 Minute Microwave Shakshouka for one You'll need: 5 minutes, capsicum, onion, ground coriander, dried thyme, dried oregano, sesame seeds, sumac, chilli powder, tomato passata, eggs.  1. Slice half a red capsicum and half an onion. Place in a microwave safe bowl. 2. Add a dash each of dried herbs and ground spices mentioned above. 3. Add a 1/3 cup of tomato passata, 2 tbsp of water. 1/2 tsp sugar and one tbsp of olive oil. Mix to coat. 4. Cover the bowl and microwave for 2 minutes on high. 5. Make a well in the centre of the sauce and crack in one or two eggs. 6. Cover again and microwave in 30 second bursts until the eggs are poached to your liking.  (My eggs took 2 minutes in total.) 7. Sprinkle over some chopped parsley or fresh corainder, salt and pepper, sesame seeds and additional chilli if you like your shakshouka extra spicy. 8. Enjoy with a little toast.