Category Archives: Food & Entertaining

DONNA HAY FAST WEEKNIGHTS MUSHROOM PASTA

30 June 2014

donna hay, fast weeknights, easy, simple, recipe, pasta, mushroom, haloumi, walnuts, sour cream, australian, magazine, book

Do you dread the ‘what’s for dinner’ question by your partner and/or kids? I have to admit that I do as I’m not very organised when it comes to meal planning. It’s something I know I should do but somehow it never happens and I end up searching for quick and easy recipes online in a bit of a panic.

One (of many) good things about this blog is that I can collect all my favourite recipes in one place and today is another fast weeknights pasta dish that is quick, easy and delicious by the lovely Donna Hay who is fast becoming Australia’s answer to Jamie Oliver and it says in her biography:

Her food, recipes and styling focus on basic ingredients that are simply prepared and beautifully photographed – hallmarks of her work which have set the benchmark for food publishing worldwide and inspired a whole new generation of cooks.

And since mouth-watering food photography is a benchmark for Stylejuicer I’m sure it won’t be the last time I’m going to feature one of Donna’s recipes. For more fast weeknights pop over to her site and be inspired – just don’t do it on an empty stomach.

MUSHROOM PASTA WITH HALOUMI & WALNUTS

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

400g spaghetti
1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
250g haloumi, chopped
1/2 cup (50g) walnuts, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
300g field mushrooms, sliced
sea salt and cracked black pepper
250g sour cream

DIRECTIONS:

Cook the pasta in a saucepan of salted boiling water for 8–10 minutes or until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/3 cup (80ml) of the cooking liquid. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the haloumi and walnuts and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until golden. Set aside and keep warm. Add the remaining oil, the garlic, mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook, stirring, for 3–4 minutes. Add the cream and reserved liquid and cook for 3 minutes. Add the pasta to the pan and toss to coat. Top with the haloumi, walnuts and pepper to serve.

 
MORE INFORMATION & PHOTOGRAPHY | Donna Hay
 
Follow Stylejuicer with Bloglovin

Food & Entertaining / 4 COMMENTS / 
Share

FOOD HEAVEN | ASPARAGUS TORTILLA RECIPE

11 June 2014

Asparagus-Tortilla-Recipe-via-acupofjo-01
 

I was looking around for a different use of asparagus before the season is over here in the UK and came across this gorgeous asparagus tortilla recipe via Joanna Goddard’s blog A Cup Of Jo.

The recipe and food styling is actually by Liza Jernow and the photography by Tara Donne who are currently collaborating to bring you/me/us Wild Apple Magazine this autumn, a gluten-free food and travel magazine filled with killer recipes, inspiring ideas and beautiful photos.

I’m not sure how they managed to get most of my favourite words into one sentence but they just have! I’m salivating already at the sheer thought of this print magazine.

But I digress, back to one of their killer recipes for Jo’s picnic series. A quick and easy asparagus tortilla that tastes delicious warm or cold and is particularly easy to serve if you remember to slice it before wrapping it up.

Isn’t the food styling fabulous!? I’m soooo going to make this and might even give you a glimpse on Instagram.

 

Asparagus-Tortilla-Recipe-via-acupofjo-04

Asparagus-Tortilla-Recipe-via-acupofjo-02

asparagus, tortilla, spanish, espanol, recipe, cup of jo, tara donne, liza jernow, wild apple, easy, quick, picnic,

 

TORTILLA ESPANOLA
INGREDIENTS:

2 large gold fleshed potatoes, peeled and cut to 1/8th-inch thick half moons
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 large eggs
1 clove garlic
1/4 lb. thin asparagus, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh tarragon
1 tsp. fine sea salt

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oven to 450F. Heat the oil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over medium low. Add the potatoes and onion, cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook five minutes more, until potatoes are cooked through but not browned. Strain the mixture in a colander, reserving the oil.

Return the pan to the stove. Add 3 tbsp. of the reserved oil and the potato mixture. Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the asparagus, herbs and salt, then pour into the pan. Let the mixture settle a bit on the bottom, then gently shake the pan to release the eggs from the bottom. Run a heatproof spatula around the edge of the pan to release the tortilla from the sides.

Once the bottom is set and the sides begin to set but the center is still wet (about eight minutes) place the pan in the oven. Watch it closely. You want it just cooked, the surface dry but not browned. Remove from oven and invert onto a serving dish or cutting board. If you are bring this dish to a picnic, let it cool completely before wrapping it up.

 

 
VIA | A Cup Of Jo
MORE INFORMATION | Wild Apple Magazine
RECIPE & FOOD STYLING | Liza Jernow
PHOTOGRAPHY | Tara Donne
 
Follow Stylejuicer with Bloglovin

Food & Entertaining / LEAVE A COMMENT / 
Share

HOME-MADE ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL RECIPE

30 May 2014

recipe, drinks, summer, elderflower, cordial, lemons, mint, refreshing, idea

Ahem… let me just clear my throat before proudly presenting you with… TA-DAH! My first food err… drinks photo shoot. Well, actually it’s my second time styling food here on the blog as I did a Christmas gingerbread cookie recipe and I have to say I love it. Granted, there’s room for improvement, obvs, but it was a great experience that I couldn’t have done without the help of my lovely neighbour who is one of the best cooks and bakers I know.

Thing is the cowboy is somewhat addicted to Elderflower cordial and in particular the home-made stuff so as the lovely white clusters are in bloom in the garden at the moment I jumped at the chance to document the process in a blog post. My neighbour and I used the Sophie Grigson recipe but added five more heads for luck and because there are so many flowers this year.

A little tip she gave me was to pick the elderflower whilst they are basking in sunshine and infuse straight away as it’ll give you an even intenser taste and subtle perfume.

For serving you can use sparkling or still water to dilute or even cloudy lemonade for an elderflower fizz. I like mine quite diluted which in hindsight wasn’t a good idea for the shoot as it looks like a shot of still water with some lemon and mint, ops! Well, what can I tell you it tasted divine after all that styling and prepping and was just the perfect drink on a hot day. So, here’s to a loooong hot summer.

NOTE: In case you’re wondering the carafe and glass is by Menu one of my favourite Danish designers and featured here before.

 

Elderflower-Cordial-Recipe-by-Stylejuicer-02

Elderflower-Cordial-Recipe-by-Stylejuicer-03

Elderflower-Cordial-Recipe-by-Stylejuicer-04

recipe, drinks, summer, elderflower, cordial, lemons, mint, refreshing, idea
 

ELDERFLOWER CORDIAL BY SOPHIE GRIGSON

PREP TIME | 20 min, plus overnight infusing
COOK TIME | 5 min
YIELDS | 1.5 litres

INGREDIENTS:

20 heads of elderflower (note: we used 25 heads for luck)
1.8 kg granulated sugar, or caster sugar
1.2 litres water
2 unwaxed lemons
75 g citric

METHOD:

1. Shake the elderflowers to expel any lingering insects, and then place in a large bowl. (Note: We didn’t bother to do this as it all gets strained through a cheese cloth anyway, so don’t worry about little bugs.)

2. Put the sugar into a pan with the water and bring up to the boil, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.

3. While the sugar syrup is heating, pare the zest of the lemons off in wide strips and toss into the bowl with the elderflowers. Slice the lemons, discard the ends, and add the slices to the bowl. Pour over the boiling syrup, and then stir in the citric acid. Cover with a cloth and then leave at room temperature for 24 hours.

4. Next day, strain the cordial through a sieve lined with muslin (note: we used a cheese cloth), and pour into thoroughly cleaned glass or plastic bottles. Screw on the lids and pop into the cupboard ready to use.

 

 
VIA | Sophie Grigson
PHOTOGRAPHY | Annie Kruse
 
Follow Stylejuicer with Bloglovin

Food & Entertaining / 2 COMMENTS / 
Share

FOOD HEAVEN | TWO INGREDIENT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE RECIPE

28 April 2014

OhLadycakes-Chocolate-Mousse-via-Stylejuicer-03

Happy Monday peeps! I was drawn in when this gorgeous shot of a two ingredient chocolate mousse popped into my Pinterest feed and clicked through to the fabulous Ashlae who writes a recipe blog called OhLadycakes.

Turns out she’s not just a fantastic cook, food stylist and photographer but has a great sense of humour which presumably comes from growing up with five brothers! In Ohio! Now, I don’t know that much about the States but it sounds a lot like The Walton’s to me, all wholesome goodness with big family meals. Alrighty!

She’s also a fellow chocolate addict and I love the simplicity of her chocolate mousse recipe which almost sounds too good to be true AND it’s vegan so give it a whirl and let me know how it turns out.

For more vegan recipes with a good dose of swear words head over to OhLadycakes for a smile and inspiration.

 
OhLadycakes-Chocolate-Mousse-via-Stylejuicer-01

chocolate mousse, coconut flakes, dark chocolate, ohladycakes, blog, recipe, 2 ingredients, ashlae

For Ashlea’s TOASTED COCONUT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE follow the link and enjoy!
 

 
PHOTOGRAPHY | OhLadycakes
 
Follow Stylejuicer with Bloglovin

Food & Entertaining / LEAVE A COMMENT / 
Share

MOOD BOARD | HAPPY EASTER

20 April 2014

Happy Easter, Bunny, Rabbit, Easter Eggs, Decorations, Decor, Flowers, Carrot Balloons, Chocolate, Hot Cross Buns, Baking, Recipe

Happy Easter everyone! Have you OD’d on chocolate yet? Are you peeling your children off the wall and scrubbing the sofa like mad to get those lovely brown finger prints off? And not for the first time telling yourself ‘shouldn’t have gone for the cream covers’ whilst your other half is peacefully nodding off after a bottle of crisp dry white. Aw… isn’t Easter bliss!?

Ok, intense family time is always tricky but seriously Easter is one of my favourite holidays. Not just because I’m a chocoholic and I can openly indulge in my favourite food group (yes, it’s a food group for me!) but mainly because unlike Christmas, Easter is still – thankfully – so much less commercial and people actually seem to get that it’s more about getting together with family and friends than spending money on presents.

So, enjoy the Easter spirit and this little inspirational mood board and I do sincerely hope you’re having a nice time with your loved ones. See you back here next week.
 
F L O W E R S / / Gorgeous fresh flowers via Nina Holst from Stylizimo.
B U N S / / Hot Cross Buns somehow they always taste best at Easter. Try Jamie’s recipe.
E G G S / / For the OCD sufferer: Ombré dyed eggs in blue. Gorge!
B A L L O O N S / / Carrott Balloons via DIY blog Jacks & Kate. How cute is that lil’ girl!?
C H O C O L A T E / / This will be me after the egg hunt. Mine… all mine. Hahaha *evil laugh*
E N T E R T A I N I N G / / Loving this simple Easter table arrangement with branches and wooden eggs by German DIYer Anja from Knobz.
 
CREDITS | I’d like to give credit to all the photographers and designers whose work is featured on this board. Sadly, most of the originators can’t be identified anymore so if you recognise your work here please email me and I’ll happily credit you and add your link.
 
Follow Stylejuicer with Bloglovin

Food & Entertaining / LEAVE A COMMENT / 
Share