lunch – My Whisk and I

Brown Rice Salad

December 21, 2025December 20, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

250g cooked brown rice (I use a store bought sachet)
400g broccoli flowers, ends trimmed
190ml cranberries
4 spring onions, sliced
125ml slivered almonds
100g goats cheese

Dressing:
45ml olive oil
60ml fresh orange juice
finely grated rind of one orange
15ml apple cider vinegar
2,5ml ground ginger
15ml honey

Add the brown rice to a mixing bowl and set aside.
Cook the broccoli until just tender, rinse under cold running water and drain well. Add it to the rice.
Place the cranberries in a bowl and pour boiling water over. Stand for 5 minutes and drain well.
Add the cranberries and sliced spring onions to the rice.
Toast the almonds in a dry pan over medium heat and add to the rice.
Crumble the goats cheese into the rice and mix all ingredients together.

Add the olive oil, orange juice, rind, vinegar, ginger and honey to a small bowl and whisk together until amalgamated.
Pour the dressing over the salad and give it another good mix through before serving.

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2-minute Salad

December 13, 2025December 9, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2 packets instant noodles, cooked without the spices
300g coleslaw mix
2 hands full of cashew nuts
1 hand full of sesame seeds

Dressing:
125ml olive oil
60ml honey
60ml red wine vinegar
30ml soy sauce
2 packets of instant noodle spice

Add the cooked noodles, coleslaw mix, cashews and sesame seeds to a mixing bowl and set aside.
Add the olive oil, honey, red wine vinegar, soy sauce and noodle spice to a small saucepan and place it over a medium heat until it starts too bubble.
Pour the hot dressing over the noodle mixture and mix through.
Place the salad in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Serve cold.

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Brie and Caramelised Apple Galette

November 30, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1 sheet puff pastry
2 x 125g brie cheese (or camembert)
2 apples, sliced into 0.5c slices
45ml honey
45ml butter, melted
thyme

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Lay the puff pastry on the baking sheet and cut it to an oval shape.
Place the cheese in the middle of the pastry – cut it smaller so that it sits snuggly together.
Add the honey and butter to a small bowl and whisk together.
Lay a layer of apple slices over the cheese and brush with the honey glaze. Repeat the apple and glaze layers.
Fold the pastry up and over the edges of the cheese and apple – pinch it to get it to stay up and around the filling – it will collapse during baking so it need not be neat.
Bake the galette in the oven for 25 minutes.
Top with fresh thyme and serve.

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Baked rice with walnut, olive and pomegranate salsa

November 8, 2025November 7, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

400g basmati rice
50g butter, melted
800ml boiling water
40g + 10g mint leaves, chopped
150g feta, crumbled

Salsa:
40g green olives, pitted and roughly chopped
90g pomegranate seeds
50g walnut halves, roasted and roughly chopped
45ml olive oil
15ml honey
1 clove of garlic, minced

Turn your oven to its highest setting.
Add the rice to an oven dish that measures about 20cm x 30cm.
Sprinkle 2ml salt over the rice and add a few grindings of black pepper.
Drizzle the melted butter over the rice and pour the boiling water into the pan.
Sprinkle the 40g mint leaves over.
Cover the dish with aluminium foil and bake for 25 minutes.

Add all the salsa ingredients to a bowl and mix together. Put aside.

Remove the rice from the oven and sprinkle the feta over.
Stir the remaining 10g mint leaves through the salsa and spoon the salsa evenly over the rice.
Serve warm as a side dish or as a main.

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Lemon Chicken Orzo

September 28, 2025by Karen Claassen1 Comment

5ml salt
2,5ml black pepper
5ml turmeric
5ml smoked paprika

8 skinless chicken breasts
30ml olive oil

1 onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
5ml Dijon mustard
125ml white wine
250ml orzo
500ml chicken stock
grated zest of one lemon
30ml lemon juice
2,5ml salt
15ml oregano, chopped
15ml parsley, chopped
190ml feta cheese, crumbed
lemon slices

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and spray a 26cm oven dish with cooking spray.
Add the salt, pepper, turmeric and smoked paprika to a small bowl and mix together.
Season the chicken with the spice mix.
Place a non-stick pan over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and then the chicken and cook until browned on both sides.
Remove the chicken and set aside.
Keep the pan on the heat but reduce the heat to medium.
Add the onion and garlic and cook for two minutes.
Add the mustard and wine and scrape up any brown bits from the pan. Reduce by half.
Pour the liquid into the prepared oven dish.
Add the orzo, chicken stock, lemon zest, lemon juice and crumbed feta and stir to mix.
Now lay the chicken pieces on the orzo and push them in slightly.
Bake in the oven for 35 minutes.
Remove and scatter over the oregano and parsley and garnish with lemon slices.
Serve warm.

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“Souttert”

February 16, 2025February 16, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2 medium onions, finely chopped
250ml finely chopped sweet pepper
500ml chopped smoked chicken viennas (about 7)
500ml grated mature cheddar cheese
a handful of soft herbs (chives, basil, coriander), chopped
6 eggs
60ml cream
2,5ml salt
black pepper

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and spray a 30cm x 20cm ovenproof dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
Add the onion, sweet pepper, Viennas, cheese and herbs to a mixing bowl and mix together.
Add the eggs, cream, salt and a few grindings of pepper to another bowl and whisk together.
Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and mix.
Spoon into the prepared baking dish and bake for 40 minutes.
Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Whipped Feta with Nastergaal Jam

January 31, 2025by Karen Claassen1 Comment

200g + 50g feta
100ml milk
60ml Heerlijk Nastergaal Jam

Crumble 200g of feta into the cup of a blender and add half the milk.
Process until the mixture becomes emulsified.
Add the rest of the milk a little at a time, aiming for a creamy consistency.
Crumble the 50g feta into this mixture and stir through.
Drizzle the Nastergaal jam over the whipped feta and spread onto a slice of freshly baked bread.

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Zingy Shoulder of Lamb

January 14, 2025January 14, 2025by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

2kg shoulder of lamb
8 cloves of garlic, chopped
15ml smoked paprika
10ml salt
5ml peppercorns
15ml grated lemon rind
15ml thyme leaves
15ml rosemary
15ml green chilli, chopped
62ml olive oil
62ml lemon juice
2 lemons, quartered

Preheat your oven to 160℃.
Add the garlic, paprika, salt, peppercorns, lemon rind, thyme, rosemary, chilli, olive oil and lemon juice to a blender and blitz until you have a relatively smooth paste.
Place the lamb in a roasting tin and brush the paste over it, covering it completely.
Pour about 500ml of boiling water AROUND the meat and cover with aluminium foil.
Roast in the oven for 3 hours.
Remove the meat from the oven and place it on a serving plate with the quartered lemons.

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Potato Profiteroles

December 29, 2024December 29, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

500g potato, peeled and chopped
5 sprigs of rosemary and thyme
1 clove of garlic
125g + 125g smoked bacon
1 wheel camembert cheese
125ml milk
60ml butter
5ml salt
125ml flour
1 egg
3 egg yolks

Place a saucepan over medium-high heat and add the potato, rosemary, thyme, garlic and enough salted water to cover it. Cook until the potatoes are very soft.
Drain and remove the herbs and garlic.
Pass the potato through a ricer or sieve for a smooth texture and set aside.
Fry 125g of the bacon until crispy and chop into very small pieces. Set aside.
Cut the camembert in half.
Cut one halve into 1cm slices.
Remove the rind from the other halve and chop it into pieces. Set aside.
Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line two baking sheets with baking paper.
Add the milk, butter and salt to a saucepan and bring to the boil.
Add the flour and stir vigorously with a spatula until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the saucepan. Remove from the heat.
Add half of the mashed potato, the rindless, chopped camembert, chopped bacon and the whole egg. Stir/beat until very well incorporated.
Add the remaining potato and egg yolks and beat by hand until smooth.
Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm nozzle.
Pipe 2cm rounds onto the prepared baking sheets.
Cut the remaining bacon into 1cm pieces. Top the profiteroles with a slice of bacon or camembert.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.
Serve warm.

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Glazed Sweet Potato

December 22, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

300g butter, cubed
250ml brown sugar
30ml flour
2,5ml ground cinnamon
250ml orange juice
grated zest of one orange
1 orange sliced into wedges
1kg sweet potato, peeled and sliced into 1,5-2cm thick slices

Place a large shallow saucepan over medium-high heat.
Add the butter and brown sugar and allow to melt.
Scatter the flour over and stir until thickened and smooth.
Add the cinnamon.
Drizzle in the orange juice while whisking and then add the zest and the wedges.
Now add the sweet potato chunks, cover with a lid, turn the heat down to medium and cook without stirring for about 40 minutes.
Remove the lid once the sweet potato is cooked and allow the extra moisture to cook off.
Serve warm.