Rosemary Roast Chicken

Can I just say how incredibly hard it is to style meat and fish?! That’s why most of my recipes on Add A Little are vegan – the bright colours of the vegetables are naturally very appetising and pleasing to the eye! But every time I try to style meat or fish, I try real hard to make it look real good but I’m never 100% happy with the shots – if you have any tips it would be greatly appreciated!

 

But I couldn’t not share this recipe with you guys because this tasted outtathisworld good! I’ve also made a video! (Don’t know if you can tell, but I’m trying to get back into the video vibes!)

Rosemary Roast Chicken gluten free, dairy free
Serves 2

An easy and delicious 1 pan meal (aka. barely any cleaning up!) that’s full of flavour. Perfect with a side of salad for a light meal or with roast potatoes. 1o minute prep and the oven does the magic!

2 chicken legs
1 large carrot, cut into chunks
2 small white onions, sliced
5 or so cloves of garlic, smashed and still in the skin
A few stalks of fresh rosemary
Coarse sea salt
Extra virgin olive oil
Splash of white wine

Preheat your oven to 180ºC.

Put your carrots, onions, garlic and rosemary in a baking tray with a liberal amount of salt and olive oil.

Set aside and rub the chicken with olive oil and salt then place on top of vegetables.

Place uncovered in the oven for 30 minutes until the skin starts to brown and crisp up.

After 30 minutes, cover with tin foil and turn the oven down to 160ºC and leave the chicken in for 30-40 minutes until cooked and tender.

For the last 10 minutes before serving, take off the foil so the skin can get crispy.

Serve with an (optional) sprinkling of coriander and a squeeze of lemon to liven the dish.

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Noodle Salad with an Asian Sesame Dressing

This noodle salad is so perfect for the holiday season. Yes, it’s the perfect time to eat everything in sight (including ALL the cookies and roast potatoes) but sometimes I feel like something a bit lighter.

This is such a quick and easy meal, taking 15 minutes (if that!) in total. Super easy for a packed lunch or just to make a huge bowl to share amongst friends. It’s delicious with some baked tofu or avocado stirred through as well.

The best part of it all has to be the dressing, packed with punchy flavours of savoury, smoky and sweet. Toasted sesame, one of my favourite ingredients gives a deep flavour whilst the Comvita Manuka honey gives a subtle sweetness.
(Also, just as a little tip, this honey and slices of ginger steeped in hot water is the best sore throat cute, definitely neccessary after a few too many nights out!)

Noodle Salad with an Asian Sesame Dressing dairy free, gluten free
Serves 2

This noodle salad is a quick meal full of fresh flavours. Elevate it by adding herbs like coriander and make it more filling by adding protein of your choice! The dressing also works perfectly on char grilled broccoli to make a nice side salad.

2 nests of thin rice noodles
1/4 English cucumber, sliced thinly or with a mandolin
Handful of dried wakame seaweed
Green vegetables e.g. sugarsnap peas, broccolli
Sesame seeds, for garnishing
Optional: herbs such as coriander and mint

4 tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1-2 tbsp honey (start with one and adjust to liking)
Grated fresh ginger, to taste
Pinch of chilli flakes

Boil  water in a kettle and put noodles in a pan. Cover the noodles with hot water and set aside for 10 minutes. (You do not need to cook them by turning on the stove, you just need to let them soak.)

While the noodles are soaking, also soak the wakame seaweed.

Prepare the rest of the vegetables by slicing them to manageable size.

Once noodles and wakame have soaked, drain them and rinse them with cold water.

Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl and stir as much dressing as needed.

Serve immediately.
If making in advance, keep all the ingredients separate and mix when serving.

This post was kindly sponsored by Comvita Manuka honey. I’ve always been a big fan of their products and I’m so happy I got to partner with them. All opinions are my own.

Mushroom, Shiitake & Spinach Dumplings

 I’m here with a super simple but super delicious recipe today of some dumplings!
Dumplings have always been a favourite of mine as they’re so easy to make a big batch of and freeze them for a later date (perfect for any university students who need some meal prep inspiration).

These are packed with vegetables but feel free to add some extra firm tofu into them to make them more hearty and filling.

I flavoured mine with ginger and sesame oil to give a true asian feel to the recipe, but if you can’t find these ingredients – not to worry! You can just season with salt and pepper and serve with soy sauce.

Mushroom, Shiitake & Spinach Dumplings vegan, dairy free
Makes 12-15 dumplings dumplings

These dumplings are simple but full of flavour. For the skins, you can make your own or they’re easy to buy from any super market these days (you’ll find them under the name ‘gyoza wrappers’ or ‘dumpling wrappers’). To cook, you can either steam them or pan fry them, resulting in a crispy base.
If freezing, make the dumplings and put them in a zip lock bag (don’t cook them)!

5 chestnut mushrooms, diced
2-3 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in water to rehydrate
3 handfuls of spinach
1/2 white onion, diced
Small knob of ginger, grated
Extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a pan and add the onion and a pinch of salt, letting it cook for about 4 minutes until translucent.

Add the ginger and chestnut mushrooms, season, and cook for about 5 minutes until all the liquid has evaporated.

Add the spinach and sliced shiitake to the pan and stir around for 30 seconds until the spinach has wilted. Turn the heat off and add the sesame oil.

Add the filling into the dumplings and wrap.

To steam, put the dumplings in a bamboo steamer and cook for around 4 minutes, until the wrappers and soft and the filling is steaming.