Za'tar Crusted Cutlets and Burghul salad with Chickpeas

Za'tar Crusted cutlets

Lamb Cutlets - yum!!!

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 tablespoons Sumac (Masterfoods Spice jar)

2tblspns fresh thyme

1 tblspn fresh marjoram, or as my husband says, pick a hunk of each......can't overdo fresh herbs.

1 clove garlic

Olive oil

Finely chop the herbs and garlic, add the sesame seeds and mix in a small bowl. Coat the lamb cutlets with olive oil and press the herb mixture onto the meat. Normally we chargrill our lamb cutlets, cook them hot and fast, but for this I added a bit of rice bran oil to the pan and lightly fried them to crunch off the topping.

We love this salad, it's so healthy, and very very tasty.

Burgul Salad

1 large red capsicum (bell pepper) (today we only had a green one)

3/4 cup Burghul (Cracked wheat, we bought the coarse stuff and it's delicious, available at the health food shop)

3/4 cup boiling water

420g can Chickpeas (Garbanzos)

1 stick celery trimmed, chopped finely

50g spinach leaves

Sumac and Herb Dressing

1 tblspn sesame seeds

2 tbspns Sumac

1 tbspn fresh thyme leaves

1 tbspn coarsley chopped fresh oregano

1/4 cup lime juice

1 tbslpn olive oil

1 clove garlic crushed

With the herbs, garlic and oil, I don't measure, I judge the amount. Many original recipes add to much lime/lemon juice and we've found that to be too strong as it overpowers all the other wonderful flavours. A sprinkle of salt doesn't go astray either......

The burghul is soaked in the boiling water for ten minutes, or longer, I prefer longer especially with the coarse stuff. If it's too wet, you can always squeeze out the excess.

Roast the capsicum. And take of the skins.

Add all together and enjoy. It's delicious and eye candy with the red capsicum, so today's pic won't look as interesting.

These recipes are for two, and they're generous. I hate running out of marinade/dressing/sauce so my measurements are always generous, but this recipe is for two.

Chilli and Ginger Lamb

3 tbspn chopped ginger

2 garlic cloves chopped

2 chillies chopped

1 brown onion chopped

500g sliced lamb steaks

1 tblspn fish sauce

tin of coconut evaporated carnation milk

peanut oil

fresh coriander

Heat oil in a wok, add lamb and lightly toss to brown, add ginger/chilli/garlic and onions, lightly saute. If the meat is finely cut, I would even saute the lamb and remove it from the wok while the ginger mixture cooks. If the meat is overdone it will be tough. Add fish sauce and evaporated milk and heat through. I don't tend to thicken these types of meals. Serve with fresh coriander and jasmine rice.

We haven't had this for ages and it's one of our firm favourites.

Chilli Chicken with Mango Salsa

I was paid a lovely compliment during the week, one of those that makes your heart sing and the impact affects you long after the words have even been uttered. One of my dearest friends expressed her disappointment that I'd neglected my food blog. As I post one liners on Facebook, she knows I still cook lol.....but I don't get so far as to post the recipes. I go through my photos in iPhoto and see lots and lots of pics I've taken of meals I've cooked, meals that never had the recipes written out for and never made it to my blog. I started this recipe blog, mainly for my own benefit. I hit on a winning combination of ingredients and I want to remember it so I can recreate it. Sometimes I'll cook the same thing a couple of times and then it falls into the archives of my mind, and so does the recipe which inspired me in the first place. So my dear Karen, thanks to you, I'll make another attempt at maintaining my food blog. I'll never rival the good food porn sites, but I'll show my food with my so so photography and know somoene will enjoy it...........

Tonight's dinner is

Chilli Chicken and Mango Salsa

Thigh fillets (more tender than breast, even though they don't look as pretty on the plate.

1/2 cup of lemon juice

1 chopped fresh chilli

2 tblspn oil

2 tsp sesame oil

2 tblspn honey

1 clove garlic crushed

2 spring onions chopped

2 tblspn chopped fresh coriander

salt to taste

Marinade the chicken thigh fillets in the above. Cook the chicken on a griddle pan or BBQ grill plate. This recipe is from the Aussies Barbecue Cookbook and I would make an alteration or two. Because we make the dinner for two, we usually still make the full amount of marinade because we find that with all recipes for sauces and marinades, they tend to be a bit light on and we feel there's not enough to do the job properly. Sometimes we have a sauce or something left over and it will keep for a couple of days - I'd rather do that than be caught short. Having said that, anything with lemon juice, I tend to under add the lemon juice. I love lemon juice, but find its strong flavour often over powers the flavours of everything else.

The Salsa recipe is my own,

Mangoes chopped

Avocado chopped

red onion finely chopped

fresh coriander chopped

garlic, crushed

fresh chilli chopped

squeeze of lemon juice to help the avo keep its colour

olive oil

salt

This served with the chicken is delicious, and is also great with pork. We'll bake a potato to go with it. I'll hope to post a picture too.

** When I make the salsa again, I'd make the whole thing up ahead, but not put the avocado in until serving time. It didn't brown, but went mushy and the presentation wasn't as good as it could have been. The dinner was delicious.