Carbonara in a Flash

It’s been awhile since I’ve had time to blog. I have been cooking lots but for now I thought I’d share a super fast dinner that will please any bacon lover in the family. Carbonara is a lot easier than you think!

1. Bring heavily salted water to a boil.
2. Chop several strips of bacon into small pieces. Place on a microwaveable plate between paper towels. Microwave for 2 minutes. Replace the paper and microwave another minute. Meanwhile chop a few sprigs of green onion and add spaghetti to the water.
3. Add the cooked bacon and onion to a large deep frying pan. Add about a half cup of cream, small handful of frozen peas and fresh black pepper. Heat on medium until it simmers. Keep on low heat.
4. When the pasta is finished, using tongs add it to the pan. Turn the heat off. Add a small handful of Parmesan cheese, more black pepper and two egg yolks. Save the whites for breakfast or make some meringue. Using the tongs stir everything together and serve immediately with a bit more Parmesan. Enjoy!!

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Many Ways with Lean Ground Turkey

Recently I’ve been buying the large 4-pack of ground turkey at Costco. Each pack is about 1.5 lbs, so I’ve had to get creative for Chris and I to have a healthy dish without “tasting healthy” (aka bland). Of course, if I could I’d be eating ground beef or sausage instead! Here are a few of the ideas I came up. Hope you enjoy!

• Turkey, Tofu, Tomato Stew – a classic favorite my mom would make growing up, healthy and hearty!
• Turkey & Black Bean Chili – spices and a bit of beef broth help to add a burst of flavor
• Turkey Bolognese – tomato paste and loads of pureed vegetables “beef” up this dish
• Turkey Boscaiola – a woodsy Italian mushroom sauce, my take includes ground turkey, mushrooms, white wine, beef broth, fresh thyme and fennel seeds
• Turkey Asian Lettuce Wraps – a Chinese restaurant classic, make it simple with just soy sauce or jazz it up with hoisin or plum sauce
• Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps – you can easily cheat and use ready made taco seasoning and instead of tortillas or shells use iceberg lettuce

Most of these dishes I’ve recently made up and haven’t really measured. But as always, make sure you taste and season to your liking!

For the Turkey Black Bean Chili, finely chop a 1/2 yellow onion and a few cloves of garlic. Cook those for a couple of minutes and add the ground turkey. Crumble it as you brown and then add in some cumin, coriander and/or chipotle in Adobo if you have it. Add a beef stock cube for extra flavor. Cook for a few minutes then add the strained black beans and about 1 cup of beef broth depending on portions. Let simmer with a bay leaf or two for about a half hour. Taste and adjust salt/pepper/cumin accordingly. Serve with fresh chopped cilantro and/or sour cream. Easy and hearty.

For the Turkey Bolognese, I like to pack in as many vegetables as I can. Sometimes I’ll cheat and use my little Cuisinart chopper and I’ll blitz a couple raw carrots, couple raw celery and about a 1/2 yellow onion. Cook that with some olive oil for a couple minutes. Add the turkey, a good heap of tomato paste (a small tin if you have it), tomato sauce if you have, and a can of chopped tomatoes. For dried herbs, I use what I have in my cabinet so maybe Italian seasoning, some fennel seeds, extra oregano etc. Add a little beef broth if you have it and a good splash of red wine. Add some bay leaves and let this simmer for a good 30-40 minutes to let the flavors blend together. Taste and add salt/pepper/sugar as desired.

Perfect for Freezing

For the Bolognese, I used some defrosted roasted cherry tomato sauce I always have on hand instead of can tomatoes. It’s full of so much flavor and the big containers at Costco are much cheaper than the small ones at most grocery stores. Just lay the tomatoes on a baking sheet (with a rim, not a cookie sheet basically). Add several peeled garlic cloves. Drizzle generously with extra virgin olive oil, dusting of kosher salt, and lots of black pepper. Roast at 375F until the tomatoes have all popped (about 30 minutes). Let this cool and using a spoon smash up any remaining tomatoes that haven’t popped and smoosh the roasted garlic. You can then freeze this as is. When you’re ready, pop the ziplock in the microwave for a minute or two. You can then add it to the dish above, maybe add some sauteed onion or shallots and add some broth. But you could also pan fry some fish and serve right on top with some asparagus on the side.

The Turkey Boscaiola is inspired by one of my favorite little restaurants in London – La Porchetta. They make this dish with pork, so I thought it’d be an easy swap for ground turkey. Of course, they make it with delicious and rich cream. I actually made this dish without cream. However, I cheated and used some leftover beef stock/sauce from a Garlic Brisket I had made previously. So the beef stock I added had been reduced and slow cooked with onions and garlic (bursting with flavor!). I think it’ll be just as good with any beef broth. Let this dish simmer to get lots of flavor. If you don’t mind a little decadence then add cream of course! Otherwise, a bit of grated Parmesan on top is just as lovely.

Finally, for the Lettuce Wraps, both are extremely quick and very healthy. Serve it for lunch by putting the already peeled iceberg lettuce leaves into a small plastic bag. For the Asian style, cook some chopped onion and garlic. Add the turkey and cook a few minutes. Add any of the following – soy sauce, sesame oil, hoisin sauce, plum sauce, chili garlic sauce. Remember you can always add more, so go easy, taste and add more if desired. Sesame oil is quite strong so you don’t need much. You can then add some crunch with water chestnuts or peanuts. Brighten it up with fresh chopped cilantro and/or green onion.

For the Taco Lettuce Wraps, simply make taco meat according to a package and serve with fresh cilantro, chopped tomatoes and/or cheese with the iceberg lettuce wraps. If you want to make your own, add a bit of each – tomato paste, cumin, coriander, chili powder, garlic salt.

For the iceberg lettuce, I usually chop the core off. Then chop the lettuce in half. It usually makes it a little easier to get the leaves off. You can always thinly slice the center and make a taco salad!

Hope these mini recipes have given you some inspiration to be healthy. Remember you can always substitute pasta for brown rice or wholewheat pasta or even farro or couscous.

Happy Easter!

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Lasagna For Friends

Lasagna is one of those great dishes that anyone can make their own. There are so many options for ingredients from spinach to sausage to butternut squash. You can either spend hours making it by reducing a fresh tomato sauce, or you can easily resort to delicious short cuts.

When I don’t have access to ripe tomatoes, I love to fall back on grape or cherry tomatoes. Get the oven heated to about 375/400F. Line a baking tray with foil, arrange the tomatoes, drizzle olive oil, salt and pepper and let them roast until they’re all popped. If you’d like, you can add a couple cloves of garlic and/or a bay leaf. They’ll take about 20 minutes depending on how fast your oven is.

Meanwhile, sauté some chopped onion and brown Italian sausage (which should be well seasoned already) in a large frying pan. Mix whole milk ricotta with a handful of Parmesan, black pepper and defrosted (or fresh) chopped spinach. Add a bit of tomato paste if you have it to the sausage meat and stir through. Then add the roasted tomatoes and all their juices. Season generously with salt and some red pepper flakes. If you’d like, add some chopped mushrooms now and let it all simmer.

While the sauce is going, heat a couple large tablespoons of butter in a saucepan on medium heat. When it’s bubbling, add the same amount of flour and stir about 1 minute until it’s turning golden. Using a whisk, slowly add about a 1/4 cup of milk at a time. Be sure to whisk out any lumps before adding more. You’ll use about 2-3 cups of milk depending on how much flour/butter mixture (roux) you have. Take off the heat and add a handful of shredded mozzarella.

In a large baking dish, drizzle olive oil so the lasagna sheets won’t stick. Add a layer of your sauce then a layer of pasta. Next add a layer of the spinach ricotta mixture (use all of it) and the rest of the sauce. Next add a layer of pasta and top with the white béchamel sauce. Finish with another handful of mozzarella and Parmesan! Bake for about 30-35 minutes. If it’s browning too quickly, cover with foil. ** The trick is to put the dish on a baking sheet in case it bubbles over!

Serve with buttery, cheesy garlic bread and dig in with family and friends for a truly comforting meal!

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Quick Dinner: Garlic Shrimp Pasta with Parmesan Breadcrumbs

For a quick (and relatively healthy) dinner, I love to use my always ready stock of frozen shrimp. If you ever see them on sale, definitely stock up.

To defrost, either toss them into the fridge before you go to work or submerge the bag in a bowl of cold water for an hour or so. For this dish, I like to remove all of the shell.

Toss the shrimp with a dusting of Cajun seasoning and garlic salt. If you don’t have Cajun spice, just add a bit of paprika, oregano, thyme and onion powder.

Mince a few cloves of garlic. Then in a separate bowl, zest and juice one lemon and add a half cup of white wine. Chop a couple green onions and set aside. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.

Next combine about 3/4 cup breadcrumbs with a bit of garlic salt and 1/2 cup of Parmesan. Drizzle some olive oil in a small frying pan. Heat the breadcrumbs on low heat until golden. But keep an eye on them! Meanwhile heat some butter and olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the shrimp and garlic to the butter and also add about half a packet of angel hair pasta to the boiling water.

Turn the shrimp after a minute and add the wine and lemon juice. Let simmer on low heat. Make sure the breadcrumbs are off the heat. Once the pasta is al dente (remember angel hair cooks very fast!), add it directly to the shrimp and turn the heat off. Add the green onion and toss well. Get your plates out. (I prefer flat soup bowls) Add half the breadcrumbs to the pasta. Toss again. Plate and sprinkle more breadcrumbs on top. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil and enjoy!

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If Ground Beef Is On Sale..

In all aspects of life, I am always happy to find a good sale/offer. In the States (not everywhere), the grocery stores will send out weekly ads in the mail. They’ll highlight offers and coupons etc. If you love to cook or have to cook for a large household, you’ll absolutely love these. I love having a cup of coffee and reading these. I flip through and see what’s available, what’s fresh and come up with meal ideas for the week.

So recently ground beef has been on sale. It’s usually the fattier type (80/20), but let’s be realistic. We can’t all eat everything we want. Food can get really expensive! Sometimes the fattier ground/mince beef is tastier too. So when I see these deals, I stock up if I can. Same goes for chicken which freezes really well. For the beef, I prefer to cook it and then freeze it. Or freeze patties so you can throw them straight onto the grill/grill pan for a burger.

Here are two recipes you can make that would freeze really well. They can be eaten for dinner or lunch and in a variety of ways. There are many shortcuts you can take, but if you have the time on maybe a Sunday you can just cook these. You could do it while the husband is watching Sunday football maybe!

• Beef Meatballs with Homemade Marinara
• Universal Bolognese or Cottage Pie Base

There are so many recipes out there for these dishes. If you have time you can use fresh tomatoes for Marinara (the riper, the better). Lately I like to blanch my tomatoes and remove the skin. Don’t hesitate to use lots of tomato paste too.

For Bolognese, some recipes use milk and/or pork as well (Epicurious) or white wine instead of red (Food Network). Some of you may be surprised to see Cottage Pie or wonder what it is. You’ve probably heard of Shepard’s Pie, but traditionally Shepard’s Pie is made with ground lamb. The beef version is called Cottage Pie. This MyRecipes.com version adds mushrooms. This Epicurious recipe uses dried marjoram. Ultimately, there are many versions. Play around with them and choose the one you like! I personally love it super thick and gravy-like.

As for meatballs, I don’t really measure when I make them. I use whatever ground beef I have, add some breadcrumbs or panko soaked with milk, an egg or two, finely chopped or grated onion and garlic, Italian seasonings and a handful of parmesan or romano. A couple of good recipes are Ina Garten’s or this Epicurious recipe that uses ground fennel. Either way, bake them and then pop ’em into a bubbling Marinara. These freeze so fantastically. Reheat with a bit of olive oil and splash of water.

Beef Meatballs & Homemade Marinara

Universal Base for Bolognese or Cottage/Shepard’s Pie

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Healthy Eating : Grilled Chicken and Portobello

After a weekend of eating with my family (which is often done way over the top), my hubby and I were keen to be super healthy. Over the past couple of years I’ve learned to accept the fact that I am not very good at dieting. If I feel deprived, I will just eat more of something really naughty like brownies or penne alla vodka. So I’m constantly trying to think of healthy recipes that are also filling. Also, as always, I try to cook meals that are great as leftovers or can be altered to make a ’round-two’ meal.

One thing I would like to mention is that my mother has always taught me to look out for the best deals (in all aspects of life really). And that’s no different when it comes to grocery shopping. The shops in the States are great at sending out weekly deals in the post. They often run Wednesday to Tuesday and usually include items that are in season. This should be a clue for what to cook fresh. It’s a great way to get ideas for soups or fruit salads etc.

Recently a new grocery store opened down the street from me called Sunflower Market which (I think) is a joint venture or merger with Sprouts Farmers Market (a HUGE favorite of mine in Arizona). They had some crazy deals going on for their grand opening which included trays of three insanely large chicken breasts (about 2″ or 2.5″ inches thick!!) for something nuts like $1.99 per tray. So my sister and I both loaded up on chicken. You can’t really go wrong with having chicken breast in your freezer. When you do buy in bulk like this, I highly recommend butterfly-ing the breasts (slice in half lengthways). In my case I had to butterfly twice for certain pieces! Then freeze them in a few Ziploc/freezer bags (maybe 2-3 pieces per bag). Then to defrost them, either toss them in the fridge in the morning or place them in a bowl with ice cold water and another pot on top to submerge them. The key is to defrost them at a cool temperature to avoid bacteria.

So this week, I used up about four pieces of chicken breast to make Grilled Chicken and Portobello with Farro Salad. For those of you who follow my blog, you might remember when I first discovered farro at a small Venetian restaurant in Brooklyn (post on my NY trip). I immediately fell in love with this grain that was slightly chewy, slightly nutty and (I think) way better than its similar-looking friend barley. I was delighted to find they sell it at Whole Foods in bulk so you can buy a little if you don’t want to try it out. It’s incredibly filling and heart healthy. You can serve farro as both warm or cold really. I’ve made it before as a hearty winter dish with butternut squash (recipe here). This time around I wanted it as a side rather than the main ingredient. I made a bit extra though for lunch the next day. You can easily skip the cheese like I did for dinner and sprinkle in some feta for lunch!

For the chicken, I went super simple. Sadly I don’t have a grill at the moment. So I call this recipe grilled because that’s what I would do if I had one! Instead I simply pan seared it. Try to turn the chicken only once like with steak. Know your stove and keep it at medium/moderate heat as you don’t want it to burn before it’s cooked through. And the key is to let it rest!! It’s just like steak in that way too in that the juices need to get back into the meat. This is how you get super moist chicken breast. If you’re worried about over cooking, then check it early. It’s always better to be able to continue cooking. You can’t undo it! Simple season it with garlic salt (or salt and garlic powder) and freshly cracked black pepper. Use this simple yet tasty chicken for many leftover dishes! Here are some ideas for leftover grilled chicken breast:

• Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad : you can be quick and just buy the salad kit with croutons and dressing ready made.
• Grilled Chicken Quesadilla : on low/medium heat, toast tortillas with chicken and shredded cheese or melt it in the oven to make a ‘Mexican’ pizza. Serve with salsa, sour cream and/or guacamole.
• Grilled Chicken Pizza : buy ready made pizza crust, add store bought marinara, cheese, chicken. This would be great with some caramelized onions and blue cheese! Or even skip the marinara and use BBQ sauce.
• Vietnamese Chicken Sandwich : using either sliced bread or a baguette (toasted preferably), put some mayonnaise on both sides, add a bunch of fresh cilantro/coriander sprigs, layer the chicken, add freshly cracked black pepper and drizzle some Maggi or light soy sauce.
• Leftover Chicken & Farro Salad with Spicy Yogurt Sauce : to the leftover farro salad, add some fresh arugula/rocket leaves and the sliced chicken. Then make a yogurt sauce with plain yogurt, bit of fresh lemon juice, salt , bit of hot sauce (Sriracha recommended!) and a bit of cumin/coriander/garlic powder. Or if you have it, just yogurt, lemon and harissa. Serve the sauce as a dollop right in the center.

I could go on.. But you get the idea! Grilled chicken is sooo universal! One more thing about this meal is the garlic lemon olive oil ‘sauce’. This came from one of my favorite dishes of slow roasted lamb, a recipe by British Chef Andy Bates who features on the Food Network UK. This olive oil infused with garlic and lemon is also another universal ingredient. I would recommend making a cup or more and keeping it on the side next to your other oils. If you add some lemon juice or white wine vinegar to it, you have salad dressing! Heat it up on a low heat and melt in some feta cheese and you have a sauce. It’s SO delicious and tastes incredibly fresh. I would definitely recommend though that you use a zester or grater for the lemon zest. You could peel it and remove the zest later if need be too.

Hope you like the dish and leftover other ideas! Happy eating 🙂

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Healthy Eating: Pan Seared Cod with Sauce Vierge

This is for my dear cousin (in law but still very dear!) Jane.

This is one of my favorite go to recipes for a healthy fresh yet flavorful dish – sauce vierge. I’ve made it before with scallops (recipe here and post here), but you could really pair this with so many different things. You could have it as an hors d’oeuvre or appetizer with toasted slices of a French baguette. You could grill some chicken or steak and serve it sliced on top. I find it goes really well with seafood. And one of my favorite white fishes is cod. It’s so meaty and hearty, and I love how it flakes off.

If you’re looking for something low in fat, this is a great dish. You can use as much or as little olive oil as you’d like. Or if you don’t want to use any you could just make this into a sort of saucy marinara and keep all the seeds. If you have really ripe tomatoes, the blanching process will soften them and you won’t have to cook them.

Because my dish above was served warm, I decided to make the sauce vierge in the pan rather than mixing bowl. I thinly sliced a lot of garlic and gently heated it with extra virgin olive oil until I could see the garlic start to sizzle. Turn off the heat and let them mingle while you do the tomatoes.

To make the blanching really easy, using a small sharp knife (paring preferably) cut out the core. Start by putting the knife tip in at an angle and then just turn the tomato. You’ll end up with a sort of cone shape and the core will pop out. Then cut a cross on the other side. Since I don’t always have the stove space to blanch properly. I often just heat up the kettle and pour it over the tomatoes in a large bowl. Let them sit for a couple minutes until you see the flesh starting to peel away. Then spoon them out into a bowl with ice cold water. They should peel easily. If they’re super ripe you can just squeeze all the seeds out. Otherwise cut them out but save them!! I added my seeds/juice to leftover sauce vierge and a few other ingredients to make a chicken tortilla soup (to be posted at another date).

For the cod, I just seasoned the fillets with garlic salt and black pepper. I pan fried them in some olive oil and finished them off with fresh lemon juice. They were pretty thick cuts, so it did take a couple minutes per side. You’ll be able to see quite easily when the fish is ready to turn and when it’s finished. Any questions on this let me know. Serve with some fresh crusty bread and you’ll feel so satisfied and healthy!!

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Oldie But A Goodie

Sometimes you just can’t beat a classic. Tonight’s classic was Spaghetti and Meatballs. It’s been raining all day and I did my best to make some comfort food without venturing out into the bad weather. Soo I had to make do with some frozen ground pork. Other items I always have in my cupboard are canned tomatoes, garlic, onions, pasta and Parmesan cheese. I know pork isn’t a traditional choice for meatballs, but it can be quite lean.

A simple recipe for tomato sauce is garlic, onion and a can of chopped tomatoes. But if you have it it’s always nice to add in carrots, celery and some bay leaves. Sometimes I feel like a chunky sauce but today I wanted one a but smoother.

If you have a small chopper, blitz one carrot and one stalk of celery. Finely chop a small onion and a few cloves of garlic. Heat a large deep frying pan (with lid). Soften the onion in some olive oil for a minute or two. Add the vegetables and garlic and cook for a couple more minutes. Crumble a couple beef stock cubes and a pinch of mixed Italian herbs. Add in two cans of chopped tomatoes. Add a pinch of sugar, pinch of salt and a bay leaf. If you have fresh thyme, add a few sprigs. And if you like spice, add some dried red pepper flakes. Let simmer on low heat for a half hour or so. Remember to taste and add more sugar if it’s too tangy!

Meanwhile, add a couple tablespoons of bread crumbs to a large mixing bowl. Add a tablespoon of milk, pinch of salt and crumble a beef stock cube. Crack two eggs and add the pork (about 500 grams or 1.1 lbs). Sprinkle some more salt or garlic salt if you have it and some black pepper. Get your hands messy and combine the mixture well. It should be pretty wet. Make small meatballs and pop them into the pan of tomato sauce. Once you’re done, slowly turn each of the meatballs and let them all simmer for another 25-30 minutes.

Cook some spaghetti al dente and add straight to a plate. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil, spoon over sauce and meatballs and top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese!

** I have to admit these were the softest and moistest meatballs I’ve ever made! And yet they held their shape too. Think this recipe might have to come back!

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Quick Dinner or Brunch : Frittata or ‘Spanish Omelette’?

Last week, I needed to come up with a quick dinner that didn’t involve rice or pasta or fish & chips. My husband suggested a ‘Spanish omelette’ – to which I said “Huh?!”. We proceeded to have one of our very funny arguments/discussions that are common when you have a trans-atlantic relationship. Others have included “what is a ‘cup’ as a measuring unit?” and “why don’t you have to refrigerate squash”.

So the ‘discussion’ got me thinking on how exactly do you differentiate between an omelette, frittata and ‘Spanish omelette’? So here goes:

• A frittata is an Italian word which is a general term for cooking eggs in a skillet. Typcially a frittata is made with eggs that are whipped to create a light texture. It’s cooked slowly and is flipped as a whole or finished under the oven. The additional ingredients are often cooked first and the eggs are added in after.
• A standard omelette (according to Escoffier) consists of three eggs with seasoning of a small pinch of table-salt and a little pepper and requires 1/2 oz of butter. It is effectively “scrambled eggs enclosed in a coating of coagulated egg” (The Escoffier) and is therefore cooked on low/medium heat.
• A “Spanish Omelette” or as it is known in Spanish a “Tortilla” traditionally consists of eggs, onion and potato. I’ve read a few different methods. Some cook the onion and potato first and pour the egg right in. Some cool the onion and potato after cooking and add to the raw egg mixture to let the flavors mingle. Some put it under a grill/broil to cook the top or in an oven. And some let the bottom set and then use a plate to flip it out and then tip it back in.

So there you have it. The differences between frittata, omelette and a Spanish omelette. Also in case you’re wondering, “omelet” is the way it’s often written in the US but “omelette” is the actual French spelling. Now seeing that I studied in Spain (Sevilla) for 6-months during college, I’m a purist and believe that a Spanish omelette can only be called such if it’s potato, onion and egg. However, my husband was insisting that he grew up with Spanish omelettes being an omelette with any type of vegetable or leftover. And I had to bite my lip after strongly disagreeing when I saw Tesco selling a “Spanish Omelette” – one with potato and the other with red pepper and chorizo.

So hope you enjoyed all those little facts! After all that, I ended up making what my husband affectionately called a Spanish omelette and what I will continue to insist is a frittata for dinner last night. The method I chose was to chop into small dice – potatoes, leeks and a red (bell) pepper. I cooked the potatoes first until they were starting to soften and then tossed the leeks and pepper in. Let it all cook a few more minutes. Cracked my eggs, seasoning and a splash of milk in a bowl and whisked. Drizzled a bit more olive oil around the edges of the vegetables and poured the eggs in. On medium heat, I let the egg start to cook and gently moved it all around until I had at least a third of the egg cooked and a layer on the bottom forming. I had the grill (in the US we call it a boiler) on mark 4 and popped the ‘frittata’ into the oven. Make sure you have a pan that is oven proof though! And I just let it cook until the top was golden and it was springy to the touch. Serve with some salsa or salad!

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Easier Than You Think – Homemade Crackers!

As you’ve seen, I’ve been baking a lot recently.. There’s something satisfying about rolling up your sleeves, putting on an apron and getting your hands dirty. While baking carrot cake or blueberry muffins is fun, it’s not quite as satisfying as rolling out dough or making meatballs. Sometimes it’s all about getting your hands into it!

Thyme & Parmesan Crackers

So a couple of weeks ago I finally made this recipe I’ve been meaning to try – Ina Garten’s Thyme and Parmesan Crackers. I’ve seen her make it on Food Network before, but when I googled her recipe I found a fellow blogger’s version – The Baker Chick’s Parmesan Rosemary Crackers. The key change that she made was to use cream to bring the dough together. She also used a food processor instead of a mixer like Ina did. Since I don’t have a mixer, I thought I’d use the cream method. It made a huge difference and the crackers turned out great!

In the end I used the Baker Chick’s measurements but used thyme instead of rosemary. The first batch I used a good couple tbsp of thyme and the 1/4 tsp salt in the recipe. My husband (and his co-workers) thought these were great on their own. In the second batch I didn’t have as much thyme left and chose to go less on the salt. They were still nice but not as full of flavor. I think the second batch would probably be better served with a dip or with a cheese platter. And be sure to poke good holes with a fork, otherwise they’ll puff and create an air bubble in the center. Also, to avoid any sticking I rolled out the dough on greaseproof paper which worked out perfectly. And as you can see in the photo below, I lined my baking trays with the paper as well. I also added an additional sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper before baking. Keep an eye on these guys while they bake as they’ll go brown very fast! Check them at 10 minutes and again after 1 minute.

To go with the crackers I wanted a reasonably healthy and easy to make dip. I’ve seen and read lots of recipes for a white bean dip and when I googled it, this was the first to come up – Giada’s White Bean Dip. Normally when I cook from a recipe, I adjust it to my taste but this recipe was perfect! It had loads of flavor and it felt incredibly healthy. The thyme and parmesan crackers go really well with it too. If you don’t want too much garlic flavor you could use roasted garlic instead or maybe garlic powder. Thanks Giada!

White Bean Dip with Thyme Parmesan Crackers

WHITE BEAN DIP

• 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons
• 1/4 cup (loosely packed) fresh Italian parsley leaves
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend. Serve with homemade crackers or heated pita chips!

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