Crispy Kale with Tahini Drizzle

Crispy Kale with Tahini Drizzle

A few weeks ago I told you about the salad queen that lives next door. The one that made the red quinoa, sweet potato and balsamic roasted beetroot salad. Well, this side dish is another one of her fab creations that was concocted in a flash one afternoon in Lagos. 

I cannot remember when last I wanted to eat a side dish that is meant for many guests, by myself. It is SO enjoyable. When I tested the recipe I literally ate the whole bowl for dinner and was craving it again the next day.  CONTINUE READING

Red Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Balsamic Roasted Beetroot Salad

Red Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Balsamic Roasted Beetroot Salad

This is a superb salad packed with so much flavour and it is really simple to prepare. Beetroot and goats cheese is a wedding meant to last!

My friend / neighbour here in Lagos is the queen of salad and she is so creative with simple ingredients. We had a wonderful dinner one weekend and she presented this unreal salad to us all nonchalantly. You know… “just something she came up with while looking at some ingredients she had in the house.” There was another salad, but more about that in the near future. All I can say is both salads shared first prize (and there were South African lamb chops on the menu, too).  

Red Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Balsamic Roasted Beetroot Salad

She only laughs when I tell her she should start writing down her recipes and steps and write her own book on healthy living and share all her great recipes with the rest of us. She says she can’t cook, but she does not give herself enough credit.  All the meals from her kitchen has been great!  Thanks, Willemien, I will never forget your crazy salad and side dishes combinations. 

Red Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Balsamic Roasted Beetroot Salad

If you decide to serve this as individual starters, reduce the amount of quinoa. If you are serving this as a side dish with a main meal you can keep the 2 cups quinoa. Also, if you are serving many side dishes with this, this salad will be enough for 6 – 8 people. 

xxx

Red Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Balsamic Roasted Beetroot Salad

 

Lime & Coconut Rice Pudding

Lime & Coconut Rice Pudding

When Life Gives You Limes…

Oppositely  to South Africa, limes are widely available and inexpensive in Lagos. The perfectly yellow, conveniently available lemons that we are used to in South Africa, on the other hand, are imported and costly in Lagos. In Nigeria life does not give you lemons, but rather limes. And when life gives you limes, you incorporate it in as much dishes or drinks as you possibly can. 

I adore the scent of limes. Have you ever walked past a lime tree overflowing with lime blossoms? It really is intoxicating. Linden tea is made from these fragrant blossoms. The aroma of limes (as in lemons) lie in the skin of the fruit. And this is exactly what I used to create this familiar dessert with a twist. CONTINUE READING