rong with a few choking fits to add drama to a meal.
O.K, I am clearly addicted to the BBQ, have hardly touched the stove recently, and not having to wash up is playing a big part, but so is the flavour. We are also loving racks of lamb, they are bit on the pricey side, but you can pick up racks pretty cheap if you get lucky at the supermarket when they a reduced to clear. Hannah marinated the rack in lemon, paprika, salt n pepper, loads of fresh herbs (parsley, oregano, basil, thyme) garlic and white wine. Eggplant just goes so well with lamb, so as soon as the lamb was on the flame, I grilled slices of eggplant on the hotplate, seasoned with salt and pepper and fresh mint, drizzling with olive oil as it hit the plate. While I was turning the eggplant and the lamb, Hannah sliced potatoes and steamed them with thyme and olive oil to put a dent in the cooking before we crisped them up on the barbie. Once the eggplant was done, we chucked them in the oven to keep warm, while the lamb roasted away with the hood down. When the lamb was about 5 minutes away, I grilled the taters...til nice and crispy. This was a fantastic take on a roast dinner, all barbecued, with that smokey crispness you just can't get in the oven. The lamb sliced up into juicy cutlets and was absolutely delicious, but I just couldn't stop eating the crispy potatoes...so good!
This was the first of our New Years eating, where we were planning to fire up the BBQ (yet again!) for dinner, but we got peckish around 4 , so we decided to re-live some spanish tapas memories. Grilled this squid quickly, which was marinated in garlic, parsley, lemon and salt and pepper. Just when they were nearly done, threw some slices of crusty bread on the grill to toast. With fresh lemon squeezed over and drizzled with olive oil, this was an great beer snack to kick off the New years festivities.
Pork is the meat of the festive season, so we just had to fire up the barbecue to make these delicious rolls. Marnated some delicious lean pork steaks, with heaps of freshly grated ginger, hoisin sauce and sesame oil, then grilled them on the flame til close to done. While hannah chucked rocket, cucumber, grated carrot on fresh rolls, I threw the steaks onto the hot plate and sliced them up and gave em a good toss around and sizzled with more of the marinade. When they were nice and crisp, I chucked it on top of the rolls. They were so tasty, with a fresh zing of asian flavours. Can't wait to put these on again!
This was one of those late brekkies we whipped up, when we had slept in and had a bit of an appetite.
We hadn't made a Risotto for ages. Had a seafood stock in the freezer, so this came together very easily.
These really are becoming Hannah's speciality, which we became addicted to in Spain. Croquetta's, one of the best tapas you can get, if you get a good fresh one! Hannah's are delicious, made with mashed potato, proscuito and seasoned with parmesan cheese. Rolled up and crumbed, then shallow fried, there really is no better snack to have with a drink!
