The competition is called Freshly Blogged. Initiated by Pick n Pay with some really great sponsors, 50 or so of SA’s food bloggers were asked to participate in the first of its kind online cooking competition.
The competitors get a challenge per week. A list of simple ingredients to use and create a magical and original dish. The public get to vote for their favorite – who ever has the most votes win weekly. Weekly.
I never won anything in my life.
After the judges ruling, a few bloggers get chopped per week until the final two remain. They will have a cook off at the Taste of Joburg event in September. ( I get the chills just typing this.)
The winner walks away with a title, magazine spread and flippen amazing prizes.
So yeah, its huge.
So here is my first recipe, guys, I hope you are all impressed!
As I wrote down our first challenge & ingredient list for Freshly Blogged in my very cool journal, one word became very obvious – and I immediately labeled it as a serious emotional trait in humanity.
Challenging…
So this more or less summed up my mood while brainstorming for the perfect recipe on Friday night. I felt seriously challenged. I had about three other ideas for this dish in my head, sprinkled with doubt and all wrapped up in confusion.
And still, I managed to produce a somewhat daring, yet delicious meal from simply using these simple ingredients – and an immense amount of bravery.
And 1, 2, 3 – Inspired!
I hope you find it in you too, to stumble upon a challenge sometime and NOT walk away. Whether it’s starting a new job, or the decision to end an old one; agreeing to go to dinner with that cute guy or deciding to rather skip on a blind date; the courage to do that one hour spinning class or convincing yourself to get up at 5am for gym – we will be faced by challenges every single day.
The question I am left to ask is you are – challenge on?”
| Prep Time | 15 min |
| Cook Time | 25 min |
| Servings | people |
- 10 ml olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic, ginger and coriander minced into paste
- 500 gr findus stir fried veggies
- 1 small pineapple peeled, cored and chopped
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 orange zest retained, peeled and segmented
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 packet phyllo pastry thawed
- 1/2 cup butter melted
- 3 tablespoons cream cheese
Ingredients
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- Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius; prepare a baking pan by buttering the pan and sprinkling it with flour. You will also need to have your hand blender or food processor handy.
- First off, heat the olive oil in a wok, add the ginger, garlic and coriander paste and let it cook for about 30 seconds, add the veggies and stir fry until done. The veggies will still be nice and crunchy.
- In another small saucepan, add the pineapple chunks with a little water and cook until soft. Drain and leave to cool down. When it is cooled, blend with a hand blender or food processor until you have a smooth pineapple puree. Chill in fridge until use.
- For the orange glaze, add the segmented orange slices to a small saucepan with the brown sugar heat it up and cook until it becomes sticky and sinfully sweet. Leave to cool.
- Now for the phyllo pastry, you literally only need about 4 sheets of this – depending on how you want your stack to look like – you can layer your phyllo and give the stack a fuller, rustic look.
- Anyhow, cut 10 cm x 10 cm squares of single phyllo pastry, transfer it to your baking tray, dob with melted butter and bake until golden brown.
- Transfer to a cooling tray and continue to add more layers to the baking tray. You might need to work fast, concentrate, and most of all be gentle!
- Arrange a single phyllo square on your plate followed by a dollop of cream cheese (I nuked it a bit just to get it spreadable) a spoonful of veggies, a nice splotch of pineapple puree and another phyllo square on top. Repeat.
- Drizzle the plate with the orange glaze (syrup by now) and garnish with segments and zest.
- Serve immediately, as you don’t want your stack to tumble and enjoy a refreshing vegetarian Oriental dish with amazing flavors and textures!
