Sunday, 29 August 2010

Cheese and Onion Omelette

I cooked myself lunch again! This is inspired by another Sophie Dahl recipe, and is nothing particularly adventurous, but I have to admit to never having before made a fluffy omelette with a filling.

The sprig of jasmine is in the photo because - hooray! spring must be on its way - the jasmine is blooming at last. I had to put it outside after lunch because I had started sneezing. Spring brings warmer weather, but unfortunately hay fever too....

Gently fry some chopped red onion in some olive oil, then remove it from the pan. I'm using my mini frying pan which I bought really cheaply at the supermarket.

Beat the eggs and add salt and pepper. Add a tiny bit of oil to the pan and pour in the eggs. Let them sit there for half a minute, then add grated or broken up pieces of cheese.

As the cheese starts to melt, add the cooked onion then carefully fold the omelette in half with a spatula.

Oops! not particularly successful, but never mind - I'll just turn it over again and cook the other side in a minute.

Cooking the other side now - I don't like runny egg.

Ready to eat - a hot and filling lunch.

Original recipe from Sophie Dahl...

Ingredients:
half a small red onion
2 large eggs
salt and pepper
50 g Red Leicester cheese or any sharp, hard cheddar
mustard to serve if liked

Friday, 6 August 2010

Tofu and Cabbage Stir-Fry

This was a day of 'firsts' for me - I cooked tofu for the first time, and I also cooked myself some lunch for the first time (I usually have a toasted cheese sandwich, but I don't think that counts as cooking!).

I used a Sophie Dahl recipe - Lily's stir fry with tofu - as a guide.

Heat sesame oil or other stir-fry type oil in a large pan or wok. Add shredded cabbage and onion and fry for a few minutes. I find sesame oil a bit pongy, and I have since used peanut oil with good results - maybe the dish loses a little flavour but I prefer the low-smell option.

Add chopped tofu, then a splash of soy sauce, another splash of mirin or apple cider vinegar...

...some grated carrot and some green veg - I didn't have any other vegies, so I used parsley instead.
Add some sesame seeds and some coriander if you have it.

I really enjoyed this - so tasty and quite filling too. It had never occurred to me to make a stir-fry without rice or noodles. A really quick and easy lunch.

Original recipe, serves 2...

Ingredients:
2 tbsp sesame oil/peanut oil
1 cup shredded cabbage
1/2 cup chopped onion
150 g firm tofu, cubed
1 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
1 tsp mirin or apple cider vinegar
1 cup coarsely grated carrot
i cup coarsely grated zucchini
1 cup snow peas or bean sprouts
1 tbsp sesame seds
handful of chopped coriander