Cooking with Siba – Episode 7

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Siba and Monde

Siba cooks with Monde Kapa

Starter – Grilled halloumi and mint salad

Monde – better known as Vuyo’s friend in the Hansa Pilsener TV ad Vuyo’s wors – is vegetarian and often substitutes cheese for meat. Siba’s twist “I made Monde a halloumi salad. I grilled it for extra flavour and served it with a fresh spanspek and mint dressing.”

Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: 5 min
Serves 4

You will need
Cheese salad
200 g halloumi or braai cheese
60 ml (4 tbsp) lemon juice
30 ml (2 tbsp) parsley, chopped
salt and pepper
1 sweet melon or spanspek
rocket or salad leaves
Dressing
60 ml (4 tbsp) lemon juice
30 ml (2 tbsp) mint leaves
salt and pepper

Method
1.    Cheese salad: Slice the cheese thickly and place on a plate. Mix the lemon juice with parsley and lightly season with salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the cheese and marinate it for a few minutes.
2.    Heat a griddle pan and grill the cheese for 2 minutes. Using a melon baller or a teaspoon, scoop small balls out of the melon. Place the rocket or salad leaves on a salad plate or bowl, top with the grilled cheese followed by the melon balls and a few mint leaves if you desire.
3.    Dressing: Combine the dressing ingredients in a jar, shake well and drizzle over the cheese and melon salad. Serve and enjoy!

Main Course – Ratatouille

This is perfect for vegetarians or for when you feel like a meatless meal. It’s filling but, most importantly, tasty and easy to make.

Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: 35 min
Serves 4-6

You will need
2 large aubergines, cut into thin rounds
salt
6 baby marrows, cut into thin slices
1 onion, finely chopped
15 ml (1 tbsp) garlic, crushed
1 each green, red and yellow peppers, finely chopped
1 can (410 g) peeled and chopped tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
60 ml (4 tbsp) Mozzarella cheese, grated

Method
1.    Preheat the oven to 180º C. Sprinkle the aubergines with salt and leave to stand for 30 min. The salt will extract water from the aubergines and remove the bitter juices. Pat dry with kitchen paper towel and set aside.
2.    Heat the oil in a deep frying pan and sauté the aubergines and baby marrows. Remove from pan and set aside. In the same pan, add the onions, garlic and peppers and sauté for 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes. Season to taste and simmer for about 20 minutes until thickened.
3.    Layer the aubergines and baby marrows in an oven dish and pour the tomato sauce over. Scatter the cheese over and bake in a pre-heated oven for about 5-10 minutes until the cheese has melted and is slightly golden. Serve while still warm.

Desert – Fruity smoothie

Smoothies are versatile as you can use any fruit in season. They are also a great way of increasing you fruit intake.

Preparation time: 10 min
Cooking time: None
Serves 2-4

You will need
1 pawpaw, cut into chunks
1 pineapple, peeled and cut into chunks
2 bananas, peeled and cut into chunks
50 ml (10 tsp) fresh lemon juice

Method
1. In a food processor or blender, combine all the ingredients together and blend until smooth. Pour into drinking glasses and serve immediately.

Tips
* You can also add plain or flavoured yoghurt into this smoothie as well as ice cubes or iced juice.
* Substitute the yoghurt with vanilla or any berry ice cream or fruit sorbet for a change.

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