Happy New Year New Year, New menu
January is the season A season to revive yourself
Editor’s Note Happy New Year Everyone! Signature S.O wants to give you a warm welcome to 2014 bringing you some great new recipes, and a few New Year’s appetisers with some healthy recipes which can get your 2014 started. It’s time to sit back and relax and enjoy the the new year and this is the season to be merry, full of New Years resolutions (This can include recipes you can change and make new). Don’t worry everyone, Signature S.O is here to help you through the New Year recipes and there is so much more to come, be prepared Let’s not forget now send in your pictures of your New Year’s Eve parties, and yes they will be continuing all until mid January as this year should be a year to be merry. So enjoy the wine, the food and the fireworks Tweet us your pictures, we want to hear from YOU… @SignatureSO
Editor
Cheyenne Dwyer-McDowall
In This Issue
Orzo Salad By Princess Fisher
Imifino, South Africa’s Delicacy By Thembe Mvula
Blood Oranges at it’s best
Honey and Pistachio Salad
By Cheyenne Dwyer-McDowall
By Director, Sheila Ocen
Goats’ Curd Crostini By Ayat Abdurahman
The Greek Orzo Salad Ingredients
Method
350g orzo or other tiny pasta shape 20g pack basil 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 25g parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), finely grated, plus more to serve, if you like 1 garlic clove, very roughly chopped 50g toasted pine nuts 290g pack bocconcini (baby mozzarella balls) 100g semi-dried tomatoes, very roughly chopped 50g bag wild rocket
1. Boil the orzo for 8 mins until tender, then drain and cool under cold water. Drain again, then tip into a large bowl. Meanwhile, tear the basil, stalks and all, into a food processor. 2. Add the oil, Parmesan, garlic and half the pine nuts, then whizz to a thick pesto-like dressing. 3. Stir the dressing through the orzo and season away. The dressing maybe have a thickness to it but just keep stirring and it will eventually coat all the grains. 4. Add the bocconcini, tomatoes and a handful of the rocket. Scatter with the remaining pine nuts and a little more Parmesan, if you like. Top with more rocket and serve straight away. By Princess Fisher
Blood Oranges at it’s best Blood oranges are tasty to eat out of hand, but they tend to be tricky to peel and are thus prime candidates for cutting into "supremes”. Blood oranges are lovely in a nice sliced citrus salad with some mint and coriander leaves. You can use them along with Golden beets for a colour twist and add some orange to a great salad bowl. In general, blood oranges are sweeter than other oranges. Their juice is delicious, but because it is sweeter than classic orange juice, it ferments quickly and should be used or drunk the same day it is juiced. Blood oranges can also be used to striking effect in Orange Marmalade or you can just eat them on it’s own and get the full nutrients out of the fruit. By Cheyenne Dwyer-McDowall
Honey and Pistachio Salad Method Christmas is over and the new year has arrived! If you’re anything like me January is defiantly the month to make up for all the naughty but delicious treats you ate last month, so I’m going to give you my favourite New Year Salad recipe! It’s a simple, healthy, refreshing and cleansing salad recipe to get those oh so crucial vitamins. And to make it even greater, this bad boy can be done in just 15 minutes! Ingredients: It’s all in the title Black pepper, mango (A few ingredients to add to your salad) For salad you can add: Any salad leaves of your choice: Romaine, Iceberg, Raddichio, Oak Leaf Lettuce or Red Chard, just to name a few
1. Next, wash a bag of wild rocket and bay leaf salad, and place them in a bowl, I love how pungent rocket is, it adds such life to salad and against the mango it works so beautifully! 2. Now wash and cube 1 sweet honey and place into your salad bowl 3. Using a blender or a pestle and motor, crush, a quarter of a cup of peeled pistachio nuts until they are coarse, if you’re using a blender be careful to keep it on a low speed! And add a pinch of black pepper. These little treats are very popular for the amount of antioxidants they contain and how few calories they contain! 4. Now the base of your salad is done, at this point if you have any pieces of meat laying around in the fridge, I’d definitely recommend adding them to the mix, I usually would add some shredded pieces of turkey or chicken into the bowl 5. Once you’re done, grab you’re honey dressing (my favourite for this recipe is orange blossom honey), dip the fork into the jar, and lightly drizzle it over your salad. Honey is a great anti-bacterial and very popular taking care of any sore throats or coughs that might have sprung up over the windy and cold Christmas period. By Sheila Ocen
South Africa’s famous Imifino Imifino, also known as Umfino, is the Xhosa or Zulu word for ‘leafy greens’. It is a traditional South African dish which consists of leafy greens and maize. Originally, Imifino is sourced from South Africa’s richly diverse indigenous wild leaves or weeds, 100 different edible plant species which have been recorded in contemporary South Africa alone. They have proved to be rich in countless micro-nutrients including iron, calcium, vitamins A and C and even omega 3s, and some even produce seeds which can be considered a complete protein. Over time, the recipe has transformed, however the more contemporary version has retained the simplicity and nutritional value of this tasty dish. Why not try it!
Main Ingredients
Method
750 ml water 250 ml white rice 1 medium cabbage, shredded 300 grams spinach, or Swiss chard, shredded 1 handful spring onions, finely chopped 2 small courgettes, 300g each, finely chopped 2 medium onions, chopped 1 handful parsley, chopped 1 dash salt and ground pepper, or to taste 250 ml maize meal
1. Place water and rice in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. 2. Add vegetables and parsley. Simmer for 10 minutes and season. 3. Add maize meal and stir well to combine. 4. Cook over a low heat for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. 5. Serve on its own as a meat-free, filling meal By Thembe Mvula
Goats’ Curd CrosBni Ingredients For the honeycomb: 250 g sugar 2 tbsp liquid glucose 3 tbsp honey 3 tsp bicarbonate of soda To assemble the canapés: Assembling the canapé: 3 tbsp olive oil 3 slices granary bread, cut into 20 discs, about 4cm in diameter 250 g goats curd, or a good quality soft goats cheese 4 small cooked and peeled beetroot, not pickled, diced into ½cm cubes 1 tbsp honey
Method 1. For the honeycomb: Line a large baking tray with greaseproof paper. Place the sugar, glucose, honey and a splash of water into a large saucepan, it is important you use a large saucepan because your honeycomb will puff up and swell as it cooks. 2. Place a sugar thermometer into the pan and slowly bring the contents of the pan to 150C. Turn the heat off and add the bicarbonate of soda and whisk briefly just until the mixture begins to puff up – it will start to look like honeycomb at this stage and it will quadruple in size (so watch out!). 3. Tip the extremely hot mixture very gently and carefully onto a tray lined with silicon paper and leave to cool. Store the honeycomb in an airtight container in a cool dry place until required. 4. To assemble the canapés: Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan and gently fry the granary bread discs so that they are golden brown and lightly crunchy. 5. Spoon a substantial amount of goats curd onto each disc so that it covers about 2/3 of the disc. Place a small amount of the diced beetroot on top of the goat’s curd. Smash some honeycomb to the size of coarse bread crumbs and sprinkle over the canapés. Drizzle over some honey and serve immediately to reserve the delicious taste. By Ayat Abdurahman