TOM KHA GAI SOUP - THAI HOT SWEET AND SOUR SOUP

I love this soup. The combination and balance of hot sweet and sour in a creamy coconut base is just delicious. The recipe is hard to write because it really needs to be tasted as it's made and adjusted to the ingredients you are using. Some limes are juicier than others, it is dependant on the sugar that is used and of course some chilis are intensely hot while others not so, so the recipe is a guideline and please please taste as you go! I used some of the lovely home grown produce that I acquired at the Whitehorse urban harvest.

INGREDIENTS

400 mls coconut cream
800 mls chicken stock
2 chicken breast
2 stalks lemon grass sliced in half and cut into 4 cm chunks
1 hot chili sliced in half
3 tbs jaggery (or palm sugar)
3 shallots cut into quarters
4 coriander roots well washed
5 cms ginger cut into thick slices
3 kaffir lime leaves
3 tbs fish sauce
2 cobs of corn kernels removed
1.5 limes juiced
1 handful coriander leaves
Rice noodles prepared to package

In a large pot combine coconut cream, chicken stock, lemon grass, jaggery, shallots, coriander roots, ginger, limes leaves and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with fish sauce and limes juice and taste, adjust if not balanced in sweet salty and sour. You will know if it's not balanced if it doesn't taste quite right. Add corn and chicken and serve when chicken is cooked through on top of rice noodles.

I have linked up with Tuesdays Table so go check out what everyone else has been up too!

WEEKLY TALLY NUMBER 1

I thought I would do a weekly tally as monthly was just too hard as there was a lot to add up.

21/1/13-27/1/13

2768 g zucchini
14 eggs
1499 g tomato
98 g lettuce
27 g herbs
201 g corn

4.5953 kilograms of food and just over a dozen eggs (I lost some as the chickens free ranged and laid somewhere and when the dog arrived back from our holiday she found them)

JERK CHICKEN

Its been a few days, and they have been cooking free. Monday night my husband celebrated a mates birthday and i stayed home with an unwell little man, so i just ate leftovers. Yesterday Melbourne's annual event Melbourne Cup meant that I spend the day celebrating (sitting outside with the spit going and enjoying great company and food) to later watch 'the race that stops the nation' or at least Melbourne at 3pm. We stayed on and stuffed ourselves some more with leftovers, so that meant another kitchen free day. Today has been pretty busy, and i didn't really feel like cooking. So i opened up Jamie Oliver's 30 minute meals and found a quick and easy recipe, that I whipped up quite quickly! Of course I changed the recipe around a little to suit our tastes and what we had in the pantry.

INGREDIENTS

2 chicken breasts
1 tbs honey
a few sprigs fresh rosemary
olive oil
salt and pepper
2 corn cobs
1 cinnamon stick
250g rice (I used red rice)
600ml chicken stock
1 tin red kidney beans
Marinade:
1 small onion
small bunch fresh thyme
2 fresh bay leaves
big pinch ground cloves
big pinch ground nutmeg
big pinch allspice
6 tbs brandy
6 tbs white balsamic vinegar
1 tbs honey
1/2 dried chili
4 cloves garlic

Boil the kettle, set oven to 200 C put a large frying pan on high, put a large saucepan on high.

Cut chicken through the middle but leave it attached at the top. drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper on both side. Place in hot pan.

Put corn in saucepan with 1 tsp salt and cover with boiling water.

Put all marinades ingredients in food processor and whizz up. Pour in bottom of small baking dish and place chicken on top, skin side up. Drizzle honey on top and place fresh rosemary on top put in oven.

Drain corn and put in the frying pan used for chicken and blister all over until slightly charred. Remove when ready.

Put cinnamon, rice, stock and beans in pan used for corn and bring to boil, cover and simmer for 12 minutes turn off and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

Serve

If I had more time I would have made more veggies, but I wasn't in the mood for thinking too hard so just followed the recipe, minus the original salad that i couldn't be bothered making. The flavours in the chicken were sensational! The rice was ok but suited the chicken dish well. Plain rice would be just as great.

OCTOBER PLANTING GUIDE

Successive planting for a family of 4...

Week 1
Peas 10 seeds
Turnips 4 seeds
Parsnips 12 seeds
Potato 8 tubers
Leek 8 seeds
Beans 6 seeds
Broccoli 6 seeds
Cauliflower 8 seeds
Celery and Celeriac 4 seeds
Coriander 2 seeds
Corn 20 plants
Cucumber 3 seeds
Melons 4 seeds
Pumpkins 6 seeds
Zucchini 4 seeds
Basil 8 seeds
Spring Onion 12 seeds

Week 2
Lettuce 10 seeds
Cabbage 3 seeds
Kohlrabi 2 seeds

Week 3
Carrot 20 seeds
Peppers and Chili 2 seeds
Silver beet 1 seed
Beans 6 seeds
Broccoli 6 seeds
Coriander 2 seeds
Beetroot 6 seeds

Week 4
Lettuce 10 seeds
Peas 10 seeds
Turnips 4 seeds
Tomato 3 seeds

Week 5
Cabbage 3 seeds
parsnips 12 seeds
potato 8 tubers
Leeks 8 seeds
Beans 6 seeds
Broccoli 6 seeds
Cauliflower 8 seeds
Celery and Celeriac 4 seeds
Coriander 2 seeds
Kohlrabi 2 seeds