Month: September 2015

Making life easier. 

Making life easier. 

by Food By Jill ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I’ve heard it all before. “I don’t have time!” “I’m not a chef…” “It’s just too much effort”. Guys, let’s move on shall we. 

The Pantry Box has come to your rescue. A fool proof, “anyone can make this happen” service. With their amazing recipes, you get to be adventurous in the kitchen and bring out your “Gordon Ramsay” without breaking too much of a sweat, or throwing a pan.  

  

Each Monday, the guys over at Pantry Box, make sure that your order is delivered straight to your door. It’s easy enough, and takes your under ten minutes to figure out your choices which gives your four meals, the recipes for those meals, ALL the ingredients, that are all numbered to correspond with the recipe, also, they are all pre-packed, pre-weighed, separately sorted (are you getting the point?) making it SUPER EASY for you. (No more complaining!!)

   
 
The quality of the ingredients in the box, are awesome! The vegetables are fresh, and stay fresh, the meat and chicken are all vacuumed packed and keep well for the week in the fridge. 

  
The delivery happens in a box that is kept cool and the entire process can not be easier (see how many “easy” terms I’ve used) 

The meals are packed with flavour, the recipes are easy to follow and they have an amazing selection on their website. 

What I love most, is that the recipes are sooooooooo different and are going to give you that little inspiration that’s needed to fall inlove with the food you are cooking and eating! 

  
It will work well for couples or a family, and everyone can have an opportunity to cook a meal (albeit that they are not under 13 and in diapers), the boxes feed up to 6 people. 

Also, as a side note, the have amazing themed “Dinner Party” boxes which serve up to 12 people…EASY!!!!!!!!! 

Availabile in Jozi for now, it’s sure to become a hit! 

❤️🍴

A bunch of corndogs 

A bunch of corndogs 

by Food By Jill ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

So when last did I post a recipe guys?! It’s been ages! So the quickest corndog batter…if you are not familiar with corndogs, you must be living under a rock. (Love you under your rock though) 

 

Corndogs are an America fun fair staple, call them a classic if you must! Easy food, served on a stick, so it’s portable, and it’s bursting with flavor! 

This can be a quick Friday night dinner with a bunch of friends, or even an after school lunch for the kiddies. 

Corndogs

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups of Semolina 
1 1/4 cups of plain white flour 

1 TBSP of baking powder 

1/4 tsp of salt 

1 egg, beaten 

1 1/2 cups of buttermilk 

1/2 cup of plain milk 

1 TBSP of oil 

1 TBSP of honey 

10 Hot dog sausages 

10 skewer sticks 

Vegetable oil for frying (about 2L) 

Method 

Heat your oil to 180C 

In two bowl, mix your dry ingredients in one, and your wet ingredients into another. 

Add the wet to the dry and mix well. 

You will have a thick, almost cake batter like dough. 

Pour your mix into a jug, the process here is to have a jug that’s slightly bigger that your sausages, so that it’s easier to dip once they are skewered. 

Skewer your hot dogs. 

Make sure your oil is heated, and start by dipping the first skewer. Take care to get all of the sausage covered with batter. 

Slowly place each skewer into the oil, and gently bob them so that you work then around, so that the batter fries evenly and doesn’t blister! (I really hope this makes sense) 

Fry until deeply golden! 

Serve with tomato sauce and mustard!!!!! 

   
    
   
❤️🍴


Glamorous Foodie Nights Out

Glamorous Foodie Nights Out

by Food By Jill ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

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Let’s observe this photo. OK. Done? This is the beautiful Charmaine Mampe Ramalope aka The Glam Foodie. I have the biggest girl crush on her, also, this blog post is probably going to be such a gushing session, so please just excuse me. There is nothing more attractive, than a woman that is completely “put together”. Flawlessly gorgeous, exuding confidence, but remaining humble, and just an all round sweet heart. Yes, she is that glam! 

I attended her first #GlamFoodie Wine and Dine evening about two weeks ago, at Aarya Restaurant in Johannesburg. Aarya is Chef Deena Naidoos baby (MasterChef SA Season 1 Winner) , which is situated in the heart of the bustling Monte Casino, and part of the Tsogo Sun Group. Glen Carlou Wines, also played a part in the evening and we were all given a slight education on the farm from the wine maker, Arco.23

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The menu of five courses, was paired with varieties of blends from Glen Carlou, and each perfectly balanced with the delicious food that came out of the kitchen. We started the evening with a trio of canapes, paired with the Unwooded Chardonnay, with its crisp fruit intensity, it was a pleasant surprise. Our starter was Scallops with a creamed risotto, drizzled with a thick prawn bisque (I need the prawn bisque in my life all the time), which went down well with the Classic Chardonnay. The next two courses of Quail and Lamb Rack, paired well with the Merlot and Gravel Quarry Cabernet (The Cabernet is PHENOMENAL) The food was delicious, the Quail, served on a Wild Mushroom Parcel was heavenly, and the Lamb Racks Shank and Spinach Thimble, was filled with flavor and was mouthwatering.

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Moving onto dessert, which was paired, as you might of guessed with a dessert wine. I generally don’t do dessert wines, I find them to be overtly sweet and, for me, they some how take away from the tastes of the dish. To my surprise, The Welder Natural Sweet Chenin Blanc, was deliciously smooth on the tongue, and not grossly sweet, served with A Creme Brulee, Panna Cotta and Creamed Lemon Curd.

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We walked away from the evening, full of amazing food, good wines, a little more knowledge about Glen Carlou, and a new appreciation for Deena and his team. I really do take my hat off to him. I know how hard it is to run a kitchen, and how easy it is to mess it all up, but his passion and intensity for what he does, shines through and is wonderfully translated to his food and the amazing buzz in his kitchen.

Charmaine is the perfect hostess, constantly around and filtering herself to all the tables. You can see that these Wine and Dine evenings, are going to be supported and will grown as the word spreads.

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Follow The Glam Foodie SA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up to date with the next Wine and Dine evenings, that will be happening in and around Johannesburg.

Be sure to book and secure your seat, as these are bound to be amazing.

Photos used with permission of The Glam Foodie SA

Photos taken by Collin Makhubela

Eat. Sleep. Repeat. 

Eat. Sleep. Repeat. 

by Food By Jill ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

  

What happens when you gather a group of people passionate about food, put them at one table, and give them welcome drinks of Patron and 4 wines to taste? Absolute fun, laughter and some chaos. Add a sprinkling of good food, live music, and some education on wine, it becomes an evening that can only be memorable. 

   
 

Hello Joburg Magazine and  iL Giardino were the perfect hosts, to another wonderful Hello Recommends dinner. 

A fun filled evening, with some new faces at the table and some very familiar, we shared gorgeous wines, lovely food, and conversation. Exchanging ideas, jokes and our most recent “foodie” stories. 

  
iL Giardino, located at 44 Stanley, Milpark, is a little gem, tucked between the hustle and bustle of Johnnesburgs concrete jungle, dripping with character and beautifully decked out, with wooden tables, fresh flowers and wrought iron finishes. You feel like you are sitting in an square in Italy. The Room, which is just off the courtyard, is a function venue that caters more to your private parties or those moments when the Spring skies open up and decide to storm. 

All in all, the venue is beautiful and the food is hearty, filled with flavour and fresh. They also boasts their own range of olive oils, which are delicious and add a punch to any salad or pasta. 

The wine tastings are going to be hosted every month, so be sure to follow them on Facebook and Twitter to be updated with these events. 

   
    
 
   
 
If you are in Johannesburg, and you haven’t downloaded the Go Hello App, what are you actually waiting for?? It’s FILLED with information and oozing with all the things you need to get through your day. 

Also, because they always bring the laughter, these two. 

  
Steven (The Joburg Foodie) and Jade (Jade) 

❤️🍴

 

Ok, cauliflower. Ok. 

Ok, cauliflower. Ok. 

by Food By Jill ♥ 0 Leave a Comment


Has anyone taken note of how versatile the cauliflower is? I have. I’m also sure that due to the Banting craze, most foodies, chefs and home cooks have started using this very underrated vegetable. 

So the basic principles of gnocchi apply here, what I tasted was nothing that would scare you away from making it, and due to the flour and egg additions, the cauliflower almost looses its flavour completely – which is a good thing for people (kids…or some grownups) that tend to not be vegetable eaters.

I also urge you to actually make a batch of either the sweet potato gnocchi or this recipe, as once you’ve mastered the technique, it’s the easiet side to any meal…or even just on its own, and it’s not as complicated as you might think.

Gnocchi is also famously brilliant sautéed in butter with fresh sage leaves, so the frills of trying to figure out a sauce or anything to go with it, is not something that needs to be overly thought of!

It’s simple food, that when made correctly, is amazing. That’s why I love it.

Cauliflower Gnocchi

  • Servings: 4 Big portions
  • Print

  • 550g of cauliflower (about 1 big head), processed finely in a food processor.
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 whole egg
  • 1 1/2 – 2 cups of gluten free flour and extra for kneading
  • 1/2 tsp of salt
  • 2 tsp of baking powder
  1. In a microwaveable dish, heat the cauliflower for 3 minutes on high. In a clean dish towel, squeeze out the excess moisture, with a tongs (see picture below)
  2. Add the eggs to a large bowl, with the cauliflower, 1 1/2 cups of gluten free flour, salt and baking powder.
  3. Mix until the dough comes together, add more flour as needed – until you can form a ball.
  4. Transfer to a floured surface and knead, dusting with flour when needed, leave to rest for about 1o minutes.
  5. Prepare a pot of water with salt and olive oil, place this on a high heat and bring it up to the boil.
  6. Now divide your dough into about 12 equal pieces, roll out each piece to start cutting you gnocchi.
  7. Start cutting your gnocchi pieces and get a helper to fork them for you. The indentations help keep them pretty, but also lap up flavors and sauces.
  8. Once you have all your gnocchi cut and prepared, drop the gnocchi into the boiling water (in batches) and once they start bobbing to the surface, transfers them to an oiled oven tray, or directly to your sauce.


  

The above plate is a basic Neapolitan sauce, with peas, Parmesan and fresh pea shots.

This plate is portabellini mushrooms, black truffle oil, peas and broccoli.

❤️🍴

Cinnamon Goodness

Cinnamon Goodness

by Food By Jill ♥ 1 Comment

Not the healthiest recipe that I’ve posted, but it sure is delicious and filled with loads of cinnamon yumminess! 

Also, Joe asked if we can make them, he has me wrapped around his little finger, so I was game! New recipe, my best recipe tester/helper…how could I say no?! 

  
Cinnamon rolls, are fairly easy to make and if you have bread making knowledge, you could probably do it with your eyes closed! These are very basic and this recipe is a simple one. You can add raisins, chocolate chips, or even dried fruits to give it extra dazzle, but I’ve kept these filled with cinnamon, sugar and butter! 

   
    
    
 

Cinnamon Rolls

  • Servings: 10-12 rolls
  • Print

  • 1 packet of instant yeast (10g) 
  • 1 cup of milk 
  • 1/2 cup of butter (halved) 
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt 
  • 3 cups of flour 
  • 2 TBSP of cinnamon 
  • 1/4 cups of sugar + 1 TBSP (divided) 

Method 

  1. Set your oven to 180C 
  2. In a sauce pan, add your milk and the first butter half. Bring to heat until the butter has just melted. Do not boil the milk. Remove from heat and transfer to a bug mixing bowl. 
  3. Once the milk and butter mix is tepid, sprinkle your yeast over the liquid and give it a stir, leave to stand for 10 minutes, this helps activate the yeast. 
  4. Now add the 1 TBSP of sugar and salt. Give this a quick stir. Next add 1/2 cup of flour at a time, keep incorporating the flour, until you get a rough ball of dough. 
  5. On a clean surface, knead your dough for about 10 minutes (give it loads of love) Transfer the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and over with cling. Leave to rest for at least 1 hour or until I doubles in size. 
  6. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough, into a thin rectangle and brush with the remaining butter and sprinkle with loads of cinnamon sugar.  
  7. Roll it up, baby! 
  8. Cut into 10 equal pieces and place them into a grease baking dish, leaving space in between them for the second rise. Cover in cling and leave to prove for 15 minutes. 
  9. Brush with any remaining butter and bake for 20-25 minutes until slightly golden. 
  10. EAT 

  
Side note : I made a very quick sour cream frosting, well not so much a frosting, more like a sweetened sour cream. 

1 cup sour cream : icing sugar to taste 

This helps keep it slightly healthier! 

❤️🍴