I've finally figured out how to roast potatoes properly.

And the results are pretty damn delicious :)

Cut potatoes relatively small. Preheat oven to 210 degrees. Mix potatoes with about 1 tbsp of oil. Put in oven. Cook for about 45 minutes. Mmmm.

I had to perform that difficult procedure to make the 'White Beans and Lemon Potatoes with Olives and Tomatoes' from Vegan on the Cheap (pg 165). However, I change every recipe I cook from. I used about 3x as many olives, extra potatoes (because there were only a few left in the bag and the rest were squishy), kidney beans instead of white beans (and an extra cup at that), like 8 cloves of garlic left whole instead of 3 crushed, and fresh basil added at the end instead of parsley. Served it on twisty tricolour pasta. It was so delicious. Simplicity at it's best. Not many flavours compliment each other as well as olives and well, anything really.

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This was part of the meal plan I wrote for this week. Our budget is a little tight because of moving costs, and me not being able to work for a few days due to flooding (yay rain!) and I find a concrete plan makes things a lot easier to handle. And since I have a pantry, and the shops are a little further away than the top of our driveway, I can buy the whole weeks groceries at once. It helps that our local fruit shop is the cheapest fruit shop I've ever been to. And the produce lasts!

I'll be blogging a little more later about various other things we have been cooking. My camera cord was in a box somewhere so I have quite the backlog of pictures to go through :)

Lunch: Lemony Lentil Salad

Lentils, capsicum, lemon juice, spring onions, olive oil, dijon mustard, black pepper

I decided this year I need to be more prepared with my work lunches - more salads and not so many leftovers. Only because I'm sick of waiting in line for the damn microwave! And someone almost always puts a fish and/or chicken dish in there before mine and the whole thing reeks.

Anyway I was on Pinterest this morning and came across this delicious sounding salad that would be easy to eat, doesn't require reheating and had minimal preparation. And it has lentils and I have nearly a whole kilo to use. And anything with mustard in the dressing is a winner.

I only made like one minor change to the ingredients - reduced the olive oil by 1 tablespoon. I don't mind eating it unheated, but I thought 3 sounded a bit much. I'd have put the third tablespoon in if there wasn't enough dressing to go round though. I also sliced the capsicums long and thin because that's how I like them.

I got three lunch sized servings out of the recipe.

A minute to relax - 2 recipes!

I had a very busy weekend (I did a painting for a silent auction for donation to the Premier's Flood Relief fund thing and it took AAAGGGES) so it was nice to come home from work this afternoon and actually do something I wanted to do. (Not that I didn't want to do the painting! I just didn't have any chores tonight :)) I tidied my garden! I cut back more lemongrass (the stuff just grows and grows!) some flowers I have that were taking over, and I pulled out my basil because the above little buggers had demolished it all. I rescued enough for a pesto though! I have one bean plant growing (Bob dug up the rest, naughty cat) and I fertilised everything with seaweed and the juice from my bokashi bucket.

On Sunday after we went to the beach we made a light lunch. It may no look very exciting but wow it was delicious. The recipe is adapted from 'Australian Good Food' magazine, Jan/Feb 2011.

Barley and Pea Salad

Makes 4 small serves

2 tbsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

pinch of dried chilli flakes

Handful of mint, chopped

1 red onion, finely chopped

Rind and juice of a lemon

1 cup pearl barley

200g frozen peas

250g frozen broad beans

Mix all but the last 3 ingredients into a small bowl and set aside.

Cook barley as you usually do (I use 3 cups water per 1 cup barley, bring to boil and simmer for about 30 mins). In last few minutes add peas and broad beans. Wait for it to reboil and cook for a minute.

Drain barley mix and return to pot or put in a bowl. Stir through dressing and serve!

To make this go further you can add tofu or seitan or something.

On Sunday evening I decided to make something for work lunch/snacks. I've been wanting to make my own muesli bars for ages since store bought ones almost always contain honey or milk powder, or are coated in yoghurt or filled with sugar, or hideously expensive *breath*, and of course are all individually wrapped in plastic and cardboard and printed and etc. Useless wastes. So I came across this recipe that I used as a base for my own bars! Let me tell you, they are the best muesli bars I've ever had. I had one with toast for breakfast this morning and I wasn't starving like I usually am by morning tea.

Homemade Muesli Bars

Makes about 14 bars

1 cup rolled barley

1 cup rolled rye

1/4 cup unsweetened dessicated coconut

2 tbsp chia seeds (black or white)

2 tbsp sunflower seeds, lightly bashed in a mortar and pestle

1/4 cup chopped dried cranberries

1/4 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds and brazil nuts)

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

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1/4 cup rice syrup*

1 tbsp molasses**

1/3 cup tahini

1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.

In a small saucepan, bring rice syrup and molasses to boil. Take off heat. Stir in tahini and vanilla.

Mix into dry ingredients.

Line a brownie pan with baking paper and turn the mixture into it. Get another piece of baking paper and press it all down flat.

Let cool and cut up into bars! I had mine in the fridge before I cut them up and they crumbled a bit. I'd cut it up at room temperature next time.

*Rice syrup is my new honey. I swear to god, it looks like honey, tastes like honey and is as sweet as honey. It even burned my throat a little when I ate a teaspoon, like honey. I don't think it has the same antibacterial properties as honey though ;) I bought this brand.

** I didn't have any maple syrup as stated in the original recipe so I used what I had on hand. Maple syrup would be better.

I've also been making yoghurt :) Proper yoghurt with probiotics and everything (except the dairy). I'll take a good photo of my next batch. The last one looked like vomit. As yoghurt tends to do. Haha. Another storebought vegan alternative that just doesn't cut it for me (SUGAR!!!). The cheap-cheap easiyo yoghut maker called for me at Woolworths!

I got my juicer out of hiding

Want a drink so potent it'll make your eyes water?

The last few days I've been feeling a little lethargic and gacky in the throat. Uhh, nuh uh. No way am I getting sick - haven't been sick for years and don't intend on starting now.

Potent Juice of Doom

Juice together, in order:

2 cm chunk of ginger

1 large garlic clove

1/2 a small onion

1 red sweet chilli or a chunk of capsicum (red or yellow)

2 med-large carrots

1 lemon or 1 small orange

Drink up! It's pretty spicy from the ginger, I liked the version with the orange better, it took the edge off a bit, but both were delicious. I'm going to keep this up for a couple more days and I'm pretty sure I'll never ever get sick again.

Don't want Allium spp. breath?

Chew a fresh sprig of parsley! I got no complaints from my girlfriend ;)