Yummy French Toast

French Toast is a simple way to bring some of that going-out-for-breakfast feel straight to your kitchen. And what I love most about it is that it can be completely personalized to your taste depending on what type of bread and toppings you chose to use. My personal favourite - large slices of multi seed & grain bread and maple syrup.

What You'll Need:

- Cooktop (gas or electric)
- Frying pan (I use 24cm one)
- Small mixing bowl

Ingredients:

• 50ml vegetable oil (that's for a 24cm frying pan - it doesn't matter if you use bigger or smaller one, just make sure the oil comes up to about half of your bread's thickness)
• 2 lrg pcs of bread
• 1 egg, whisked
• 25ml milk
• 1/4 tcp cinnamon (optional)

Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium-high until it's very hot. The hotter the oil, the quicker will your toast fry and therefore absorb less fat. But at the same time, don't burn the oil! Just place your hand over the pan (safe distance please!) and if it feels hot, it'll be hot enough.

In the meantime, mix the egg and milk. I like to add some cinnamon because it smells divine when it cooks, but seriously, if you don't have it, don't worry about it. Once your oil is hot, dip the bread into your egg mixture and gently place inside the frying pan. It will take about 1 minute on that first side, and 30 seconds when you turn it over.

Cover with your choice of toppings - maple syrup, fresh fruit, ice cream - and enjoy!

Serves: 1

Tip: if you have people over for breakfast, sprinkle some icing sugar over the french toast, for that wow factor.

Pesto Pasta

Let's talk about basil. With it's specifically strong, fresh smell and taste, I believe basil can literally define a meal. I'll be honest - basil had to grow on me. I wasn't too crazy about it when I was younger, but then again, I wasn't crazy about most herbs - I think it's just one of those things you start to appreciate as you get older and start to cook more. One thing about basil though, just like with most of the other herbs, if you need it finely chopped, you must use food processor or mortar and pestle. And when I moved out of home, I had neither. And I'm pretty sure majority of people don't. And another thing is, even if you are a proud owner of both, food processor takes ages to clean, and mortar and pestle takes ages to crush and grind, and what not. And come on, after long day at work, or on a lazy weekend afternoon, no one wants to do that to themselves! So what I use when I make pesto is minced basil in a tube! I use Gourmet Garden brand, which can be found in any supermarket in Australia, next to fresh herbs. And let me tell you - it's delish! And makes this pesto pasta a breeze.

What you'll need:

• cooktop (gas or electric)
• large saucepan
• pasta drainer (if you don't have it, don't worry - just drain it with the lid on, moved slightly for water to come out, but not pasta as well)
• small mixing bowl or dish

Ingredients:

• 150g spaghetti
• 5 tbs minced basil
• 1 clove garlic, minced or finely chopped (if you're using minced garlic out of the jar, you'll need 1/4 tsp)
• 5 tbs olive oil
• 50g parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tsp pine nuts or walnuts, chopped (optional, especially with all the nut allergies out there)

Fill the saucepan with water and bring it to boil on medium-high heat. Add pasta and cook according to package instructions - usually around 7 minutes.

In the meantime, mix basil, garlic, oil, parmesan cheese and nuts in a bowl, and mix well. This won't look like it's much, but trust me, it'll cover pasta nicely.

When pasta's cooked (and the best way to check is just to try one string - just don't burn yourself!), drain it well. Add pesto and mix well with a fork, scrapping down sides of the pan.

Serves: 2

Old School Shepherd's Pie

I just made a very yummy Shepherd's Pie for Sunday night dinner. I am a firm believer in comfort food and good old country cooking, and it doesn't get any closer to it than this delicious classic.

Add some cold weather, warm crusty bread and sweet corn on a cob, and you'll be in tasty heaven.

What you'll need:

• Oven (although, this is not a requirement - it just serves to make mashed potatoes golden at the end)
• Cooktop (gas or electric)
• One large saucepan
• One medium saucepan
• One 2 l serving dish (square or oval, it really doesn't matter, dimensions would be approx. 25cm x 25cm x 5cm - if you're going to put it in the oven at the end, make sure it's ovenproof)

Ingredients:

• 2 tbs oil (olive or vegetable - whatever you prefer)
• 1 kg minced lamb (if you prefer beef, no worries - it'll just be called Cottage Pie then)
• 1 brown onion, chopped finely
• 2 carrots, chopped finely
• 2 celery sticks (this is optional), chopped finely
• 500 ml beef stock
• 3 tbs tomato sauce or ketchup
• 3 tbs Worcestershire sauce (if you don't have it, replace it with 3 tbs BBQ sauce)
• 3 tbs plain flour (this will thicken the sauce)

For Mashed Potatoes:

• 1 kg potatoes, pealed and cut into quarters
• 1 tbs butter
• 20 ml milk (you may need more or less depending on how naturally mashy your potatoes are - better to start with less and then add more if needed)
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbs melted butter or oil spray

Place the potatoes into medium size saucepan and cover with water. Cook on medium-high for 40 min or until potatoes are tender (use the fork to check).

Preheat oven to 220 C.

In the meantime, heat the oil in the large saucepan and when hot, add chopped onion, carrots and celery. Cook until onion changes colour and becomes softer (about 3-5 minutes). Make sure you stir frequently as onion burns very easily, and there is nothing worse than burnt onion! Add mince lamb (or beef) and cook until it gets brown, breaking up all the lumps as it's cooking. Add beef stock, tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce, stir well and cook for 25-30 minutes. Lastly, add the flour and stir well. You'll notice that the sauce will thicken almost instantly. Remove from heat and transfer to an ovenproof dish. Set aside.

Potatoes should be tender by now. Remove from heat, drain from all the water, mash them well and then add milk, butter and salt. Stir everything together and once the fluffiness is to your desired consistency, cover the meat mixture with mash potatoes. Brush the surface with some melted butter or oil spray.

Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until mash surface changes colour to gold (and again, this step is optional).

Serves: 4-6

Intro...

Opening a restaurant has always been a dream of mine. So I've decided that some 4 years from now, I will finally take the plunge.


In the meantime, this will be my food diary...somewhere to jolt down my own recipes and interesting new trends in the food and restaurant industry.

I'd like to use this opportunity to say that all the recipes on Restaurant Dreams will be about easy cooking. Delicious cooking...but easy cooking. We can't all be Nigella Lawson (my personal favourite), but I truly believe that we can all cook! I've noticed that most of my friends prefer take out over cooking simply because they believe they can't cook. I refuse to believe that! Hopefully some of my easy recipes will inspire all of you who've just moved out of home, or moved out long time ago, to say hello to your kitchens and start cooking! And trust me, you'll be just fine.
x
Mina