On the couch : Julie & Julia

I'm home sick today, which is unfortunate because nobody likes being sick, but also fortunate because it finally gave me the opportunity to watch this wonderful film!

The premise is simple; Julie (Amy Adams), is a young American woman seeking fulfillment outside of her mundane office job and is persuaded by her husband to write a blog about cooking, which she loves. She decides to cook her way through Julia Child's (played by Meryl Streep) "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" in 365 days and tell the world about the highs and lows as she goes along. Running concurrently is the story of Julia Child, her entry into the culinary world and her mission to publish a French cookbook for Americans.

I was initially concerned that Julia's high, flutey voice would grate my nerves, but instead I found her simply delightful and enchanting to watch. On the other hand I found Julie to be a bit whiny and self-obsessed. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie, and would recommend it as a must see for all the food bloggers out there.

Vegetarian Lasagne

Here's a fun fact; i used to be a vegetarian. We're talking ten years before I made the switch to the dark side... And during those many years I often found myself irritated by the limited selection of tasty meat-free options, and the repetitiveness of restaurant menus. For instance, yes I like eggplant and pumpkin, but do I want it to feature in every meal? No. For me it was not so much an ethical choice not to eat meat, but rather that I just didn't like the texture, and hence if I wanted a lasagne I didn't necessarily feel like layer upon layer of roasted vegetables, I just wanted a basic pasta sauce minus the mince. Luckily for me I love home cooking, so I was able to create my own deliciously simple vege recipes, that my friends and I could all enjoy, and that I still get requests for to this day.

The best thing about my lasagne is that you can use pretty much any veges you have laying around, so don't stress if you don't have everything on the list. Not to mention that the cheese sauce is to die for!

You will need roughly a 23 x 29 x 7cm oven dish for this recipe, and approximately 9 instant lasagne sheets.

For the pasta sauce:

700g passata (tomato puree)
400g canned diced tomatoes
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 red capsicum, diced
1 large carrot, grated
1/2 head broccoli, finely chopped
3 spring onions, chopped
2 large handfuls baby spinach
2 tsp dried basil
tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried parsley
Sea salt & cracked black pepper
Olive oil

For the cheese sauce:

2 tbsp butter
3 tbsp plain all-purpose flour
600ml milk
3/4 cup grated cheddar (tasty) cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Sea salt & fine white pepper

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees.

In a large saucepan heat a tablespoon of oil, and fry off the onions and garlic until tender. Add the rest of the vegetables, and saute for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Pour over the canned tomatoes, passata and herbs, then season well with salt and pepper and allow to simmer for 20 minutes to get the flavours going.

Once you red sauce is almost ready you can prepare the cheese sauce. Start by melting the butter over a low heat, then add the flour and mix well. Cook the flour for a minute or two, stirring all the way, then gradually add milk (about 100ml at a time) stirring constantly so there are no lumps. Once you have added all the milk stir in the two cheeses, and mix well until it has melted through and the sauce is nicely thickened. Season with a little salt, and lots of white pepper.

To assemble the lasagne, start by spreading a little pasta sauce in the bottom of the oven dish, then a layer of lasagna sheets, top with plenty of pasta sauce and a good dollop of cheese sauce. I like to combine the sauces a little in each layer, for extra cheesy flavour. Continue layering, finishing with sauce on top, then sprinkle with extra grated tasty cheese.

Bake for 1 hour, or until golden brown and bubbling. Serve with a fresh green salad, heaps of garlic bread and of course a good glass of red wine. Heaven!

Serves 6 - 8.

Chocolate Tart

I rarely make dessert. Generally when the sugar craving hits I just persuade (read: bully) my husband into ducking out to grab me an ice-cream... However, last week I decided it was time to expand my culinary repertoire, and voila! here you have it - one beautiful chocolate tart.

Now this tart is very very rich and not overly sweet, so if you prefer a lighter option you could perhaps try using half dark and half milk chocolate.

For the base:

125g chilled butter
1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup icing sugar
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 egg yolk

For the filling:

4 egg yolks
1 tbsp custard powder
2 tbsp caster sugar
200g dark chocolate, chopped
300ml thin pouring cream
250ml milk

Place the butter, flour, icing sugar, almond meal and cocoa powder in the food processor* and process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and process until the mixture just comes together.

*If you don't have a food processor you can do this by hand - just put all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and rub with your fingertips until you achieve breadcrumb like consistency.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead until almost smooth. Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Roll rested pastry on a lightly floured surface to a 4mm thick disc, then press into a 23cm tart tin with a removable base. Use a knife to trim any excess from the edges then place in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Place the tart tin on an oven tray and line the pastry with baking paper and fill with rice or beans. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then remove and discard the rice or beans and cook for a further 5 minutes. Remove tart case and reduce oven temperature to 160 degrees.

Meanwhile, to make the custard filling, combine egg yolks, custard powder and caster sugar in a saucepan. Add the chocolate, cream and milk then place over low heat. Cook, whisking occasionally for 5 minutes or until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat.

Pour the chocolate mix into the pastry case then bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the custard is just set. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool, then place into the fridge to chill completely.

Serve topped with lightly whipped cream, fresh raspberries and a grating of extra dark chocolate.

Serves 8.