In the kitchen: the December edition

Thistles and Kiwis

There are times when we want to eat our favourites, and there are times when we need a change, to try something new or just ring the changes a bit. I’m in that sort of mood right now, a mix of the Wonky Box of vegetables forcing me to think a bit creatively, the new season, and a need for variety. Here are three things I have tried out this month.

A summer quiche

I had part of a leek left over, so put together a quiche with the softened leek, feta and tomatoes. Result – excellent, and the leftovers made two very good lunches. I confess to using frozen pastry, as to be honest I usually can’t be bothered.

Steak and spice

I recently got hold of Molly Baz’s new book, More is More. The second thing I tried was this beef with tomatoes and salsa macha. So far I am a bit disappointed with what I have made (the other was a topping for salmon), and need to give this book a third chance. This was tasty, spicy and flavourful but just a tad disappointing. I didn’t mix the tomatoes with the beef as I thought the cold fruit with the hot meat wouldn’t go so well mixed up…maybe I am wrong, but it also gave more flexibility with leftovers. The dish involves peanuts and sesame seeds, along with chioptle.

Turkey and pasta

We don’t do turkey and trimmings for Christmas with us having this holiday in the summer, and also celebrating the time with a Swedish Christmas Eve table instead. Turkey isn’t easy to get hold of here anyway, but I can get turkey mince in one shop which I love to use to make Julia Turshen’s meatballs.

For a change, I made Nigel Slater’s dish for turkey and pasta (I used linguine instead of papparedelle as that is what I had to hand). I should have sprinkled some parsley onto the finished bowl for colour, but I can honestly say this was extremely delicious and just as good for lunch the next day. Don’t be put off by the anchovies – they just blend into the sauce. Highly recommended for a mid-week meal.

So there are a few things I have made recently. There will be a This week’s small pleasures post probably late Saturday NZ time, a Christmas post on Boxing Day and some sort of round up of the 2023 before the end of the year. That is the plan at least!

Also entered into the Weekend Traffic Reboot hosted by Boondock Ramblings.

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com or lofgren@thistlesandkiwis.com

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Published by Thistles and Kiwis

Loves summer, sunshine and cats. Beginner gardener, likes eating, cooking and reading about food

25 Comments

  4. Your food looks so delicious and you have such a way of photographing it. Maybe a cookbook is in your future. I think we will do a ham for Christmas Day. It will be just me and the hubs and that is ok with us. We have had family time with others all week. Merry Christmas!!!

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    1. Oh thank you so much! We’re having ham too – it is a part of Swedish Christmas food but also popular here as with Christmas in summer it is good for hot weather. And Merry Christmas to you too!

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  5. I agree that your food photographs are worthy of publication. It is fun ringing the changes now and then. Leftovers can re-appear in different guises and are nearly always tasty.

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  7. Barbara, those deep red tomatoes looks amazing! I can only imagine their taste. I made tomato & herb soup for dinner last night, but I surely did not have access to that kind of fresh ingredients.

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  10. I would love to try something different at Christmas, never get my way though. Turkey is always so much work. The Swedish Christmas Eve table sounds intriguing, and I hope you post some pictures of it. Merry Christmas!

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  12. I had already decided to pick this as a favorite this week because … well, food. Ha. But then I scrolled down and saw you had mentioned my blog so just to clarify that I am not playing favorites…I am still going to pick this as a favorite post this week because I love the color and variety of food and different ideas on how to make things with what you have on hand. I love the photos too. Thank you for sharing!

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  13. Pingback: Weekly Traffic Jam Reboot December 28 – Boondock Ramblings

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