The return of the food processor: Pesto Pasta Salad, Bean’n'Basil Besto, and breakfast in a wine glass

Ash’s version: traditional pasta

Hello again world! Yes, I’m alive. Apologies for the delay in posting.

Rather than attempt to post recipes twice each week, I am taking a quality-over-quantity approach. After all, these recipes must be worth repeating, and if I’m draining my creative juices and giving you less-than-amazing dishes, not only will you be disappointed, but I won’t be living up to my own standards. While blogging is important to me, if it is to reach a high standard, it has to be sustainable along with other big time-consuming priorities: working, studying and fitness. So please bear with me, and when you visit Cat’s Kitchen, expect to see a high quality weekly post. I will be only sharing the best of each week with you, which often will mean that each post will include multiple recipes.

Such as today’s. In celebration of the return of my food processor and blender, I succeeded in using each and every part of it – the blender, the big-bowl processor and the small-bowl processor. For breakfast, I made a apple, berry and coconut smoothie – satisfying and delicious. Lunch was a pesto pasta salad, two ways. Creamy, fresh and believe it or not, oil and nut free. The final recipe is a bit of a fusion between a bean dip or hummus, and basil pesto. Bean’n'basil pesto? Let’s call it a besto. Continue reading

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Japanese dinner bowls with otsu sauce

I’ve been wanting to make this Otsu recipe from 101cookbooks for ages, but something about the recipe has never quite felt right to me as I’m choosing what to make for dinner. I think that’s because it’s a bit heavy on the soba noodles and tofu, and light on the veggies. While the sauce sounds incredible, soba noodles are delicious, and I quite enjoy the occasional tofu, it’s not the sort of thing I’d feel nourished and energised after eating a good serving. And it’s nice to feel nourished and energised, just as it’s nice to enjoy a hearty meal without guilt.

Somehow it took me this long to figure out the solution – take those delicious otsu flavours and use them to make my own recipe, something I know I will love.

Here we have it. A small serving of soba noodles, a stack of lightly steamed greens and shallots, finely sliced tomato and a few slices of soft ripe avocado, drenched in that sweet and salty otsu sauce. Continue reading