Butter Poached Radishes | The Tale of Peter Rabbit

First he ate some lettuces and some French beans; and then he ate some radishes; and then, feeling rather sick, he went to look for some parsley.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Beatrix Potter

I can’t seem to stop falling down this nostalgia rabbit hole. Every single Beatrix Potter tale I read is bringing back a fresh wave of memories from my childhood days. So much that I’ve booked in to get a little tattoo done of Benjamin Bunny himself, my favourite character from any of the woodland animal tales.

I’m quite nicely situated in Melbourne, in a beautiful suburb within walking distance to the city. It has the fortune of hosting a local farmer’s market every Sunday that is worth a stroll through even if you don’t really need anything. I always find myself picking up the oddest vegetables and having to experiment with them later on. Which has resulted in realising that spaghetti squash is so delicious and I’m so bitter that barely anywhere in Melbourne seems to ever have it in stock.

Last Sunday I picked up some heirloom tomatoes, a rainbow mixture of zucchinis and some crisp radishes. Instantly my mind went back to The Tale of Peter Rabbit, and Peter’s foray of thievery through Mr. McGregor’s garden. I’ve already made some blackberry and apple muffins inspired by the children’s story - but the radishes drew out a more savoury option.

These butter poached radishes are a perfect accompaniment to a meal, as a side or even just a snack. They are so delicious with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

Butter Poached Radishes
Serves 5 as a side dish
Ingredients
10 - 12 radishes, with the stems and greens cut off
1 cup melted butter
1 - 2 cups water
Sea salt
Black pepper

1. Arrange the radishes into a thick bottomed pan and pour in the melted butter and enough of the water so that the radishes are just covered.

2. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.

3. Bring the pan to a boil and then reduce to a low heat to continue simmering. Have a little taste of the poaching liquid at this time and add in more salt or pepper if necessary.

4. Allow to simmer for approximately 10 - 15 minutes or until radishes are soft and losing their bright red colour (though, mine did not really for some reason). During this time remember to turn the radishes in the pan so all sides poach evenly.

5. Serve the radishes with a little of the poaching liquid and a sprinkle of salt. Best served straight away!

Baked Green Bean Macaroni and Cheese | The Secret Life of Bees

They got under way slicing ham, laying out fried chicken, shaking paprika on the deviled eggs. We had green beans, turnips, macaroni and cheese, caramel cake - all kinds of funeral food. We ate standing in the kitchen holding paper plates, saying how much May would have liked everything.
The Secret Life of Bees
Sue Monk Kidd

I absolutely tore through The Secret Life of Bees. I think it wouldn't have taken me more than three days to read it from start to finish. There's something just so comforting about the book, it encourages you to keep reading and at the end manages to practically wrap your mind in a layer of warmth. Not to mention - the food. Every type of southern style comfort food imaginable must be mentioned throughout this book, be warned, you will spent a good amount of time hungry while reading.

I felt torn on what to make from it's pages, and likely will go back to try more from it. It wasn't until I was wondering through the local farmer's market the other day and came across fresh green string beans that I decided on what would be my dinner that night. My life has been at a bit of standstill recently, after graduating last year I've been faced with that awkward in-between of being a recent graduate and trying to find work in an appropriate field. I have a bad habit of medicating that feeling of crawling anxiety with comfort food.

Within the book, a death occurs, and like with many funerals an attempt is made to comfort the family of the deceased with platters of comfort food. What better to draw inspiration for when I needed a sense of comfort myself?

*Note: if you are using dairy cheese/milk/butter for this, the nutritional yeast will not be totally necessary (though it is delicious). It's super useful when creating a dairy free cheese sauce as it has a incredible cheesy/savoury flavour to it. 

Baked Green Bean Macaroni and Cheese
Serves 1 very hungry person or 6-8 side dishes
Ingredients
350g dry macaroni pasta
20g + 60g butter
2 tbsp plain flour
1-2 cups milk
1/2 cup nutritional yeast *see note
100g cheddar cheese, grated (I used Bio Cheese Cheddar, melts really nicely in this)
100g green beans, ends off and cut in half
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup breadcrumbs
Sea salt
Black pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 180C. Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a baking dish - any size is really fine as long as it's not ridiculous huge. Common sense.

2. Place a medium sized pot of water with a inch of salt on the stove and leave to boil. When boiling add in pasta and cook until they are just about done - drain and leave to the side. You still want them to have a little firmness to it otherwise it'll go too mushy when baking.

3. Steam the green beans (anyway you want to it fine) until just soft. Heat the 20g of butter in a pan and wait till it is bubbling, when bubbling add in the steamed green beans and cook in butter for about 2-4 mins, adding in a pinch of salt and pepper. Remove from pan and put to the side.

4. Put the 60g of butter into a medium sized saucepan on a low heat until melted, add in the minced garlic and cook into the melted butter for 1-2 mins.

5. Add the flour into the butter, keeping it on a low heat - mix quickly, it should form a soft pasta.

6. Add in 1/2 cup of milk to the flour mix on the pan, whisking continuously as you do so. The mixture should thicken (make sure you keep it on the low heat) gradually. As it does continue to add half a cup of milk at a time - depending on how much sauce you want, you can use 1-2 cups of milk.

7. Take the sauce off the stove and add in both the nutritional year and grated cheese. Whisk together quickly until cheese melts in. It's fine if the sauce has some lumps - it'll just be bits of garlic or unmelted cheese. Add in a generous pinch of salt and pepper to the cheese sauce.

8. Mix the cooked macaroni, green beans, and cheese sauce together in the baking dish until the sauce covers everything nicely. Sprinkle the half cup of breadcrumbs on top with a little extra nutritional yeast if you have some.

9. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the top has lightly browned. Enjoy!

Blackberry Apple Muffins | The Tale of Peter Rabbit

Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail, who were good little bunnies, went down the lane to gather blackberries.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Beatrix Potter

There is nothing more nostalgic for me than stories from Beatrix Potter. A friend of mine has a great online op-shop where she sells some amazing vintage finds, I was able to get from her some classic Beatrix Potter books recently which reminded me of my utter love for the characters within.

I grew up in the middle of the bush, with rabbits playing in my backyard and fox pups wrestling nearby. I have memories of a child of attempting to leave them little treats outside that I imagined they would like based off the homely characters from books such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit.

Now I'm in Melbourne and far away from the picturesque area I spent my younger years, it can be hard to recall that particular kind of nostalgia. While when I was younger I would be used to wandering down the dirt roads at home picking wild blackberries throughout summer, instead now I must compensate by picking blackberries up at my local farmer's market.While not exactly what Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail may have had, I'm sure those three bunnies would have enjoyed these muffins immensely.

Blackberry Apple Muffins
Makes 7-8 muffins approx
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups plain flour
3/4 cup raw sugar
2 tsp baking power
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup oil (vegetable or canola is best)
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla essence
100g fresh or frozen blackberries
2 small Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced small

1. Prepare a muffin tin (or two depending on how many the tin holds) with liners or by greasing the tin.

2. Mix together all dry ingredients in a largish bowl.

3. Whisk together all wet ingredients except for the fruits and add wet mix into dry. Mix until just combined.

4. Add in the apple and berries and mix until just combined. Try not to over mix.

5. Spoon into the prepared tin(s), filling them up with batter right to the top in order to get the nice, raised muffin tops. Place in oven and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.

6. The muffins are done when an inserted skewer into the middle comes out clean. Leave them to cool in the tin for at least five minutes before removing. Best enjoyed with a cup of tea.

Coconut Cream Cake | The Reptile Room

Both the kitchen and the cake were still warm from baking. The cake was a magnificent thing, rich and creamy with the perfect amount of coconut.
The Reptile Room
Lemony Snicket

I’m not a huge cake eater, I much prefer the savoury side of eating and tend to find cake just not quite satisfying. However, I kind of love making cakes. Which is quite fortunate for my housemates and neighbours. This particular cake is so delicious during hot weather, the frosting is creamy, with the notes of coconut throughout creating an almost refreshing mouthful. While the cake itself isn’t too sweet.

Obviously I’m on a little bit of a Series of Unfortunate Events kick at the moment. My parents recently dropped off a lot of my childhood books that were still at their house. Including a heap from the above mentioned series. I think the finishing up of the recent Netflix series has inspired me to do a bit of a reread - I have no memory of reading some of the parts, so it’s definitely a fascinating thing to revisit. I genuinely have no idea how the book series finishes at this stage, and am super curious to whether it’s the same as the television show.

Of course I had to make Uncle Monty’s (was the death of any guardian quite as awful as this one?) coconut cream cake from The Reptile Room.

Coconut Cream Cake
Ingredients
Cake
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 tsp bi-carb soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups desiccated coconut
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1/2 vegetable oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
Frosting
100g vegetable shortening, softened
1/2 cup coconut cream, can kept in fridge over night, scoop the solid cream from the top
1 cup cream cheese (I used Sheese brand, but any works well)
4 cups icing sugar

Cake

1. Preheat your oven to 180C and prepare two round 18cm cake tins. I highly recommended both greasing the pans and also placing a square of baking paper at the bottom to assist in getting the cakes out.

2. Sift together the four, baking power, bi-carb soda and salt, add in the desiccated coconut, sugar and mix to combine.

3. Mix in the vegetable oil, coconut milk, vinegar and vanilla and stir. It will be quite a thick batter, but take care not to mix too much.

4. Divide the batter between both pans evenly and smooth out the top best you can - the thickness of the batter can make this a little hard but just do your best.

5. Bake for around 30 minutes, check by inserting a skewer into the middle to see if it comes out clean. Leave to cool completely before frosting.

Frosting

1. I recommend using either a stand mixer or hand mixer for this process - however it can be done by hand - it’s just hard.

2. Combine the cream cheese and the vegetable shortening in a mixer until light and fluffy.

3. Add in the icing sugar - about a cup at a time, along with spoonfuls of the coconut cream (make sure the coconut cream is properly solid when doing this).

4. Keep adding the icing sugar until it is all gone and the frosting is mixed well - but still nice and fluffy.

5. You can frost the cake however you like, I recommend a layer in-between the two cakes and some on top. While I did frost all the sides, it can be tricky to do without creating a bit of a mess and potentially ruining the cake - however as long as it tastes good does it really matter what it looks like?

6. You can decorate with a little left over desiccated coconut and kind of whatever you like. I used fresh raspberries, but that’s just because raspberries make everything better. The cake will last roughly three days before becoming stale, and tends to dry out a little if kept in the fridge. Still delicious though!

Caramelised Pear and Walnut Porridge | The Secret Garden

 ‘Tha’ doesn’t want thy porridge!’ Martha exclaimed incredulously.
‘No.’
‘Tha’ doesn’t know how good it is. Put a bit o’ treacle on it or a bit o’ sugar.’
The Secret Garden
Frances Hodgson Burnett

Porridge for breakfast is memory that is forever buried in my mind. Oats cooked with honey and bananas, sometimes even on the old wood fire stove that sat in the middle of the house I grew up in. I’m not sure exactly at what point I decided I didn’t like porridge, but at some moment throughout the years I must have come to the conclusion that I hated it. Much like Mary from The Secret Garden I would push it away with barely a spoonful eaten if I had the misfortune of having it placed in front of me at breakfast time.

It was only a few years ago that I began searching for an easy breakfast in the morning that the prospect of porridge suddenly became appealing again. I generally get up for work at about five am most morning, which is quite tough during the winter months. Summer was easy, I’d just make a smoothie, but the cold months of winter left me wanting something far more nourishing before I’d step outside into the frosty mornings.

Porridge is a great option for an early morning, while this particular recipe does take a little longer to cook, you can instead simply use quick oats to speed up the process. Obviously you don’t need to top them with caramelised pears every morning - there’s many more options, such as honey, brown sugar, nuts, apples, bananas, or basically anything that you want.

Porridge
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 cup steel cut oats
2-3 cups of coconut milk + 1/2 cup coconut milk
2 pears, sliced however you want really
Small handful walnuts, chopped roughly
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp brown sugar
Vanilla pod or vanilla essence
Sea salt

1. Place the oats into a medium saucepan along with the 2 cups of coconut milk (leaving the extra cup to add in if the porridge thickens too much) and vanilla essence or vanilla pod - ensure if using the vanilla pod that you open it before putting it in the porridge to ensure the inside flavour comes out.

2. Place on the stove on a medium heat and remember to keep an eye on it, stirring every few minutes. Porridge will quite easily overcook and stick to the pot if you don’t stir frequently. Add in the extra coconut milk during this time if the porridge thickens to much before cooking thoroughly.

3. While the porridge it cooking, you can caramelise the pears and walnuts. Heat the butter in a small frying pan until it is foaming. Add in the pears and cook until browned before turning to the other side and repeating the process.

4. Once the pears are nicely browned scatter the brown sugar over them evenly, keeping them in the pan and on a low heat. After a few minutes the sugar should dissolve in with the butter - turning into an almost thick syrup. Make sure you use a wooden spoon to keep it all moving in the pan during this time so it doesn’t burn - plus it’ll coat the pears nicely.

5. Add in the remaining half cup of coconut milk, it will sizzle quite a bit, but that’s fine, just keep it moving in the pan. Add in the walnuts at this point also and gently mix the pears and walnuts around so they get coated in the caramel.

6. Serve the porridge immediately with the pears and walnuts spooned on top, and the caramel drizzled over.

Leek and Potato Stew | Coraline

Coraline was disgusted. 'Daddy,' she said, 'you've made a recipe again.' 'It's a leek and potato stew with a tarragon garnish and melted Gruyere cheese,' he admitted.
Coraline
Neil Gaiman

I don’t know how many times I’ve mentioned that I dislike summer but here’s another one; I dislike summer. I am not built for Australian summer’s, we’re currently on a 30+ heatwave in Melbourne this week and one day in and I’ve had enough. Also, hot weather means I can’t justify making soups and stews like this one - except I did because it’s delicious and I don’t care.

This particular stew was taken from the pages of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, a delightfully dark children’s book. Throughout Coraline laments the home made food that her father makes, stating with disgust that he’s made another recipe. As an adult I feel that most of the recipes mentioned throughout sound delicious, hand stretched pizza’s anyone? But memories of turning my nose up in disgust at the mere touch of ginger in any dish, or the weird texture of fish when I was younger definitely brings about a sense of relation to Coraline’s prospective.

This stew however is simply a bowl of deliciousness and comfort. You can add more stock and blend it up into a soup if you prefer, but personally, there’s some sort of cosy appeal to hugging a bowl of stew close while watching a movie or reading a book at night. Also! While I am aware that it is rosemary in the photo, not tarragon, however I forgot to buy tarragon but had rosemary growing in the garden - so, laziness prevailed. 

Note: I did not leave myself enough time to find a vegan gruyere cheese for this so I just used a vegan cheddar I had in the fridge. Still delicious!

Leek and Potato Stew with Tarragon and melted Gruyere Cheese
(Serves 4)
Ingredients
5-6 red potatoes, diced
2 leeks
4-5 cups of vegetable stock
2 tbsp tarragon, roughy chopped
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup gruyere cheese grated or crumbled *see note
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper

1. Slice the white part of the leek finely and then dice up (if you’d prefer not to discard the green parts you can save them and use them in a homemade veggie stock later).

2. Place the butter - it is a lot of butter but honestly the more you use the better it will taste - into a large saucepan on a medium heat until it is melted and bubbly. Add in the leek and cook for around 2-3 minutes while stirring to ensure they don’t stick and burn.

3. Add in the tarragon and diced potatoes and mix to coat with butter before adding in stock (reserve about a cup for later).

4. Leave on a medium heat for around thirty minutes so it’s bubbling just a little(it could take a little less time depending on how small you dice your potatoes). During this time you may want to add in the remaining cup of stock if the stew is reducing too much.

5. At this stage the potato should be well cooked and slightly mushy, I mixed my cheese through so it would melt in throughout the whole thing but simply melting it on top would also be super yum. Enjoy!